Author: Nargizian David

AZG Armenian Daily #078, 30/04/2005

Armenia-Turkey

‘WE MAY PERHAPS ESTABLISH POLITICAL RELATION WITH ARMENIA’

PM Erdogan stated informing that he had ordered to reconstruct Surp Khach
church of Akhtamar

On April 28, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Miliet
newspaper’s staff to give clarification for his statements about President
Kocharian’s reply letter. It was published in April 29 issue article of
Miliet entitled “We May Perhaps Establish Political Relation With Armenia”.
Miliet writes that Turkish PM gave green light to thorough political changes
and spoke of creating a resolution to lay foundation of a U-turn in the two
countries relations. Miliet conditions these shift in Erdogan’s position by
Armenian President’s reply to his letter where the latter indicated, “We
need first diplomatic relations established and then form a commission”.

During his meeting with Miliet staff, PM Erdogan noted, “I do not say that
only historians should take up the Armenian issue. Let the political
scientists join them and the politicians draw their final conclusions. We
are ready to put up with our past. But are they? We cannot accept those who
confuse deportation with genocide. Kocharian tried to remind us in his
letter that that is an issue for politicians. We know that very well. But
politicians usually have a team. The team comprised of historians, political
scientists, archive workers does the work and presents us, and we take
decisions based on their studies. Without having done this, they demand
opening the borders. Very well, why do you keep on pushing the international
recognition of the genocide while you demand to open the border?”

Afterwards, Miliet indicates at another sign of Erdogan’s goodwill: his
order to the Culture and Tourism Ministries to reconstruct Surp Khach church
of Akhtamar Island. “We have done assignments. Most likely the work is in
process. I demanded Mr. Atilla (tourism minister) to get in touch with
Armenian Patriarch and demand an architect for reconstruction. This is done
to avoid rumors that they ruined it and now are reconstructing improperly”,
Erdogan said.

At the end, expressing hope that the Armenian side will give an adequate
sign, Erdogan reminded that Armenians do not accomplish UN Security
Council’s resolution and European Council’s decision and added, “We warn
them saying: ‘You do not end your occupations’. But there is less resistance
in the issue of Kars Treaty. Their position shifted to positive. That’s why
I wrote the letter. We can establish political relations and simultaneously
continue the works”.

It’s not excluded that Erdogan points to his offer to study the Armenian
Genocide by saying works. That is unacceptable. But it must be accepted that
Erdogan does not anymore put forward preconditions while speaking of
establishing political relations with Armenia, nor does he link these
relations with the will of 3d counties. That’s is perhaps unprecedented for
the Turkish PM.

By Hakob Chakrian

LAND WORK CONTINUED ON ARMENIAN SECTION OF IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE

YEREVAN, APRIL 26. ARMINFO. Land work is being carried out on the
Armenian section of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline, says the director
general of the High Voltage Power Transmission Lines company Sahak
Abrahamyan.

The work is carried out by Sanir (Iran) under Iranian financing. The
whole project is to be finished in 2 years. The pipeline is crucial
for Armenia’s energy security and is to diversify the country’s gas
inflow sources. Yerevan Thermal Power Plant is to order the gas paying
for it in electricity. The operator of the supplies will be
ArmRosgazprom, the client is HVPTL, general contractor Sanir.

The supplies will be started in 2007. Iran has lent Armenia $30 mln
for the Armenian section for 7.5 years at 5% and has pledged to supply
the country with 36 bln c m of gas in 20 years.

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)

April 27 2005

Europe vs Turkey

By Adil Al-Baghdadi

Turkey’s EU bid has hit another snag with President Chirac’s
contention that `they’, the Turks, have different traditions to
Europeans and said Turkey has to do 15-20 years of work until it can
present itself as European.

The French President was quoted as saying: `Whether or not Turkey
is European or Muslim does not matter and it depends on Ankara to do
what is necessary to become more European as current life styles and
values in Turkey are different from those of the Europeans’.

It seems Turkey wanted to convince the world that it has changed its
ways by merely saying yes and doing no to EU demands.

A look at some of the European ways of dealing with things and the
way Turkey behaves may shed light on how much it has to do to become
a true European state:

In Europe anyone can proclaim their ethnicity without fear and
without being intimidated or discrimination.
In Turkey everyone is Turkish and any suggestion of being a citizen
of Turkey from a different ethnic group is viewed with suspicion and
is liable for prosecution

In Europe anyone cam mock political or military leaders and vilify
them in cartoons, works of art, political satire and in songs.
In Turkey political figures can sue anyone who depict them in
cartoons and its absolutely forbidden to vilify anyone in the
military establishment and anyone defies this will end up in prison.

In Europe anyone can wrap themselves or burn any flag if they so wish
without fear of prosecution.
In Turkey all people are allowed to wrap themselves with only Turkish
flag and anyone who burns the flag even as young as 10 years of age
will be tried and sentenced.

In Europe anyone and any group can distribute leaflets in towns,
cities, shopping centres and high roads without any fear of
prosecution provided that the content does not incite people for
violence or racially motivated.
In Turkey those who distribute leaflets calling for human rights can
expect no protection and may be lynched by a mob and then prosecuted
and end up in prison.

In Europe Times Atlas can be bought off the shelf.
In Turkey Times Atlas is banned as it contains in its index a
geographical designation of the region Kurdistan.

In Europe anyone can publish and print any material in any language
as long as the content is not racist, derogatory or contains
offensive remarks against any ethnic race and does not encourage
violence against others

In Turkey no one is allowed to publish anything without official
permission and racist content, derogatory and offensive remarks are
normally allowed against Kurds.

In Europe no one is allowed to incite people to commit violence
In Turkey no one is allowed to incite people to commit violence only
against Kurds. (Turkish general staff issued a statement calling
Kurds so-called citizens)

In Europe any deliberate killing by the police will result in public
inquiry, suspension and prosecution of the policeman involved and
then will be followed by apology and compensation.
In Turkey policemen can kill 12 year old child and his father and
only get removed from their local station and reinstated to full duty
in different region.

In Europe the killing of a child with 14 bullets to his frail body by
four policemen is thoroughly examined by the media and investigated
by judiciary and parliament and result in many resignations from top
government posts to lower ranks within the police station in
question.

In Turkey the killing of an innocent child of 14 years of age is
first justified and gets reported as a killing of a terrorist, then
only questioned when a global news wire reports the killing as a
mistake by the police force.
The killing is then gets 50/50 reaction, the first fifty condemns the
killing while the other supports the action by police, and there will
be no public inquiry or debate, no prosecution for the culprits, no
resignation from any level within the government.

In Europe the mayor of the region where the unfortunate killing took
place condemns the action, apologizes for the family and asks for
culprit policemen to face trials.

In Turkey the governor of the Kurdish region where the boy and his
father were killed applauds the action by police and issues three
statements justifying the killing and calls the victims terrorists.

In Europe taking a course in any language is as easy as taking a bus
ride.

In Turkey taking a course in any language is as easy as taking a bus
ride only if the language chosen is Kurdish, where applicants would
undergo different lines of questioning and are handed application
forms asking them about motives for choosing the language and any
political affiliation.

In Europe mayhem against the Armenians in the dying days of Ottoman
Empire in which 1,5m perished is recognized as genocide.
In Turkey the events between the years of 1915-1918, which saw the
complete annihilation of the whole population of Armenian regions of
Anatolia, are called incidents.

No wonder Turkey still has to do a lot of home work and sole
searching in order to get any where near European norms and
standards.

Turkey glad US president avoided referring to Armenian “genocide”

Anatolia news agency
27 Apr 05

Ankara, 27 April: Turkey welcomed some parts of the statement that US
President George Bush made on 24 April, in which he took into
consideration several sensitivities of Turkey regarding so-called
Armenian genocide allegations, and supported Turkey’s proposal to form
a joint commission (to examine the allegations), Turkish Foreign
Ministry said on Wednesday [27 April].

Foreign Ministry spokesman Namik Tan told weekly press briefing: “It
is not possible for us to agree on some assessments in this
statement. History can solely be written on the basis of official
documents, the accuracy of which is indisputable.” On the other hand,
Tan said that the process to be launched after formation of a joint
commission would constitute a significant step for settlement of
tolerance and compromise between the two nations (Turkish and Armenian
peoples) and contribute to regional peace and stability.

Touching on the letter sent by Armenian President Robert Kocharyan to
Ankara, Tan said that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was
the interlocutor of this letter, and noted that the public would be
informed after the letter was assessed. [Passage omitted]

Ethnic Azeri, Armenian students clash in Tehran – Baku report

ANS Radio, Baku
26 Apr 05

Ethnic Azerbaijani and Armenian students have clashed in Tehran. The
clash took place when Azerbaijani students were protesting at the
genocide of the Turks, and Armenian students were holding a rally to
protest the concocted genocide of the Armenians.

The secretary of the international relations department of the World
Azerbaijani Congress, Ahmad Obali, said that Armenian protesters beat
some of the Azerbaijani students in the incident. However, the police
detained several Azerbaijani students instead of stopping the brawl
and did not intervene in the protest of the Armenians. Obali said that
several people were injured in the protest action staged by about 400
ethnic Azerbaijani students.

Ethnic Azerbaijani students in Tehran have many times appealed to the
relevant authorities over holding a protest action but have not
received a positive answer.

The spokesman for the Iranian embassy in Baku, Lutfali Azimzada, has
told ANS that the embassy does not have any official information on
the clashes in Tehran.

PRESS RELEASE
FEDERATION OF ARMENIAN ORGANISATIONS IN THE NETHERLANDS (FAON)
24 April Committee
Weesperstraat 91
NL – 2574 VS The Hague
Contact: M. Hakhverdian
Tel. 070 4490209
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

Press Release

COMMEMORATION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE 1915-2005

Great public interest for commemoration of Armenian Genocide at the Armenian
Genocide memorial in Assen

Assen/The Hague, 24 April 2005 – By buses, train and cars from several parts
of the country more than thousand Armenians and other interested persons
attended today the commemoration ceremony of the 90th anniversary of the
Armenian Genocide at the Armenian Genocide memorial in Assen. A survivor of
the Armenian Genocide, meanwhile the 92 years old lady was also present this
year in Assen.

The commemoration meeting was organised by the 24 April Committee of the
Federation of Armenian Organisations in the Netherlands (FAON). The ceremony
started with laying of wreaths and prayer of the Armenian priest at the
memorial in the cemetery De Boskamp in Assen. This memorial was erected at
the request of an Armenian inhabitant of Assen four years ago following
intensive protest of rightist Turks and procedures up to the Council of
State.

This year’s commemoration is significant for the Armenians living in Holland
by the fact that the Dutch parliament has recognised the Armenian Genocide
last year by adopting the Rouvoet motion.

After the ceremony at the memorial a commemoration meeting took place in the
auditorium with Armenian declamation and music (among others doudouk) and
with several speakers like Dutch MP Farah Karimi, professor René Diekstra,
the Armenologist professor Jos Weitenberg, representative of the Armenian
embassy Tigran Balayan and father Armen Melkonian. On behalf of the
organisation Mato Hakhverdian spoke as Chairman of the FAON, Noubar Sipan as
Chairman of the 24 April Committee, and Inge Drost as member of the 24 April
Committee. The commemoration in Assen was covered by Dutch national and
regional Radio and TV and almost all Dutch newspapers.

The speakers expressed each in his own way heavy criticism on the Turkish
denial of the Genocide. Farah Karimi indicated that at recent discussion of
the Armenian question in the Turkish parliament an ovation had taken place
at the declaration that there was no Genocide. Instead, according to Karimi,
it would have been appropriate to observe a minute of silence for the
victims of the Genocide. Professor Diekstra, prevented by circumstances to
be present personally, criticised in his text Erdogan’s call for an ‘open
debate’ on this question. Nonsense, according to Diekstra, because one
cannot debate the truth. He is supporter of the imposition of recognition of
the Armenian Genocide to Turkey, namely by putting this as a condition for
the negotiations with the EU. This is the best way, also for the
democratisation and human rights in Turkey, according to Diekstra.

The recognition of the Genocide by the Dutch Parliament does not mean that
the 24 April Committee will remain quiet. The Committee wants, in
co-operation with Dutch organisations, to do something for the information
deprivation in the Netherlands about this subject, among others by means of
lesson material. Furthermore the Committee puts: denial of the Armenian
genocide must be stopped, to start with the Netherlands. To this end the
committee will not be afraid of taking legal steps against denialists of the
Genocide.

Tampa Tribune, FL
April 24 2005

90 Years Later, Armenian Deaths An Open Wound

By JULIE PACE [email protected]
Published: Apr 25, 2005

TAMPA – Every April 24, Peter Zakarian pauses to remember a family he
never knew and a homeland he has never seen.
Zakarian spends the day commemorating the Armenian genocide, often
called the first Holocaust of the 20th century. Sunday marked the
90th anniversary of the genocide, an event still unknown to many
Americans and still unrecognized by the U.S. government.

The Armenian genocide was carried out by the “Young Turk”
government of the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The Muslim Turks
killed 1.5 million Armenian, Assyrian and Greek Christians, more than
half the Christian population living in the Ottoman Empire.

Five of Zakarian’s great- grandparents were killed by Turkish
soldiers.

“They were rounded up, lined up and shot,” Zakarian said.

Those members of Zakarian’s family that did survive endured bullets
and torture. Zakarian recalled the story of a great-uncle who
survived an execution-style attack.

“He stayed under a pile of bodies and hid for three days,” Zakarian
said. “In the middle of the night, he got up and ran away.”

Zakarian’s uncle and three surviving great-grandparents escaped their
hometown of Diyarbakir with few belongings. They made it to Europe,
where they boarded ships bound for New York harbor.

Zakarian knows he owes his own life in the United States to the
struggles of his family.

“I say to myself I’m living in Carrollwood in a nice house, but it’s
sad my family had to go to hell and back for it,” he said.

While Zakarian mourns his family’s struggles, he is outraged that the
Armenian genocide receives little attention. The Turks have never
admitted to the killings, and even though several European nations
have recognized the genocide, the United States has not.

Bills seeking to recognize the Armenian genocide have been brought
before the U.S. Congress, the most recent in January 2004. Historians
argue the U.S. government’s $1 billion in foreign aid to Turkey
influences the decision not to recognize the genocide.

“It always seems to have a lot of momentum, but they never actually
pass it,” Zakarian said.

Although the U.S. government doesn’t recognize the genocide, Father
Nersess Jebejian does, holding a Mass each year at St. Hagop Armenian
Church in Pinellas Park.

“We still fight to be recognized,” Jebejian said.

About 120 people gathered for Sunday’s 90th anniversary Mass, a large
number considering Jebejian estimates fewer than 1,000 people of
Armenian decent live in the Bay area.

“We want to remember this terrible tragedy because it wasn’t just a
matter of killing people,” Father Jebejian said. “It was deporting
them, forcing them from their towns.”

Zakarian said he recalls his family’s stories of the Armenian
genocide when he reads about recent conflicts in Rwanda and Sudan.

“It really should come to an end,” Zakarian said. “But if you
don’t know your past, you’re going to keep repeating it.”

Researcher Christine Perry contributed to this story. Reporter Julie
Pace can be reached at (813) 865-1505.

CONFERENCE “ARMENIAN GENOCIDE – 90 YEARS LATER” HELD AT AMERICAN
UNIVERSITY OF ROME

YEREVAN, APRIL 22. ARMINFO. Conference “Armenian Genocide – 90 years
later” was held at American University of Rome.

ARMINFO was informed in the State Commission on organization of
arrangements dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the Genocide,
Italy’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Italy Rouben
Shugarian came out with an opening speech at the conference. Deputy of
Internal House of Italian parliament Jancarlo Paliarini also took part
in the conference. It should be noted that just by his proposal in
2000 the Internal House of the Italian parliament adopted the document
on recognition of Armenian Genocide. Representatives of the Armenian
community of Italy, professors and lecturers of the American
University of Rome took part in the conference as well.

Chirac and Kotcharian to lay wreath to victims of massacres

Agence France Presse — English
April 21, 2005 Thursday

PARIS April 21 – President Jacques Chirac of France and Robert
Kotcharian of Armenia will lay a wreath Friday at a Paris monument
commemorating the victims of the massacres of Armenians by the Ottoman
Turkish authorities which began 90 years ago, Chirac’s office said.

The two men will hold talks at the Elysee palace at 5:45 p.m. (15H45
GMT) before being driven to the monument on the banks of the river
Seine which was inaugurated in 2003.

Armenia will this weekend mark the 90th anniversary of what it calls
the genocide perpetrated between 1915 and 1917. Some 1.5 million
people may have died in the massacres, though the Turkish government
puts the figure at between 250,000 and half a million.

The French parliament adopted a controversial law in 2001 which states
that “France publicly recognises the Armenian genocide.”

France has a large community of Armenians, estimated at around 400,000.

E. GUINEA PRESIDENCY DENIES AI ALLEGATIONS

Panafrican News Agency (PANA) Daily Newswire
April 18, 2005

Malabo, Equatorial Guinea (PANA) – Equatorial Guinea has described
Amnesty International as a “faceless organisation” following the human
rights body’s recent allegations that inmates were nearly starving
at Black Beach, the Malabo central jail.

“The information given by Amnesty International which, for us, is
a faceless organisation of individuals with unknown intentions are
false and ungrounded,” a special presidential adviser charged with
missions and the press, Miguel Oyono Ndong Mifumu, said.

According to him, “all the prisoners receive their daily food
supplies,” while mercenaries, who have their food habits different
from Equato-Guineans, “have an adequate diet and a special budget to
that effect.”

“Amnesty is seeking to exert pressure on the government to free
the mercenaries. It is serving the interest of the mercenaries’
families. But we think that what it must do is to verify in situ,
as does the International Red Cross, to bolster its affirmations,”
Mifumu contended.

AI on Thursday said in London that at least 70 prisoners were
threatened with imminent starvation in the Black Beach prison in
Malabo after the country’s authorities ceased to give them food.

According to the rights body, the inmates, among them 11 foreigners
(six Armenians and five South Africans) sentenced last November for
their involvement in an attempted putsch against President Teodoro
Obiang Nguema, and Equatorial Guinea opposition leaders jailed without
a trial since last year, were “in a lamentable state.”

A number of them “are already extremely weak due to torture or poorly
treated chronic diseases,” the organisation charged.