Author: Tambiyan Samvel

REPRESENTATIVE BAIRD AGREES TO OSPONSOR THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION

ArmRadio.am
14.03.2007 17:10

Members of the greater Portland-area and southwestern Washington State
communities held meetings with the district offices of Congresswoman
Darlene Hooley (D-OR-05) and Congressman Brian Baird (D-WA-03) on
March 7, 2007 to ask the representatives to cosponsor H.Res.106,
the Armenian Genocide resolution that was introduced in the House
of Representatives earlier this year. Organized by ANC of Oregon
Chairman Rafael Saakyan, the meetings were also aimed at continuing
to strengthen local grassroots relationships with each Representative.

As a direct result of these key constituent meetings and relationships,
Representative Baird has agreed to cosponsor the Armenian Genocide
resolution, bringing the total number of co-sponsors to 184.

"We wanted to make sure our elected officials were aware of the
significance of this resolution and why it was important to support
it," said Saakyan. " This resolution sends a clear message that our
Congress has the strength to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide and
provide the moral foundation to help us fight the continuing specter
of genocide that confronts us today in Darfur."

EBB AND FLOW OF THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITIES OF THE INDIAN OCEAN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

UCLA Asia Institute, CA
March 13 2007

March 17, 2007-Saturday Morning (9:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.)

Introduction-Ebb and Flow. Richard G. Hovannisian, UCLA

Armenian Settlements and Cultural Life

Chair and Discussant: Engseng Ho, Harvard University

Armenian Mercantile Communities in Southeast Asia. Margaret Sarkissian,
Smith College

>>From Dispersion to Nation: Armenian Diasporic Speculations in
18th-Century India.

SATURDAY, March 17 (9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.)

Morning Session: 9:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Introduction-Ebb and Flow Richard G. Hovannisian, UCLA

"Armenian Settlements and Cultural Life" Chair and Discussant:
Engseng Ho, Harvard University

Armenian Mercantile Communities in Southeast Asia Margaret Sarkissian,
Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts >>From Dispersion to Nation:
Armenian Diasporic Speculations in 18th-Century India Khachig Tololyan,
Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut The Indian Interlude in
the Development of Modern Armenian Drama Peter Cowe, UCLA INTERMISSION
"Azdarar" and Other Armenian Periodicals of India Osheen Keshishian,
Glendale Community College Joseph Emin and British Colonial Policy in
Calcutta Mana Kia, Harvard University General Discussion LUNCH RECESS

Afternoon Session: 2:00-:5:30 p.m.

"Indo-Armenian History and Relations" Chair and Discussant: Houri
Berberian, California State University, Long Beach

Colonial Counterflows: An Armenian Lady from Agra in London, circa 1610
Michael Fisher, Oberlin College Khwaja Gorgin Khan: An 18th-Century
Armenian General of the Bengal Army Bhaswati Bhattacharya, University
of Leiden Notables and Benefactors (with a film on Sir Catchick Paul
Chater) Richard Hovannisian, UCLA INTERMISSION Armenian-American
GIs and the Armenian Community of India in World War II Gregory
Aftandilian, Harvard University The Present State of the Indo-Armenian
Community Armen Baibourtian, Erevan, First Armenian Ambassador to
India General Discussion

SUNDAY, March 18 (2:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.)

"Long Distance Merchants and Julfan Trade in the Indian Ocean" Chair
and Discussant: Edward A. Alpers, UCLA

French Commercial Ambitions and Armenian Interlocutors in 17th-Century
Asia Sanjay Subrahmanyam, UCLA Long Distance Merchants and the Role
of Julfan "Networks of Trust" Sebouh Aslanian, Columbia University
Don Pedro di Zaratte: A Julfan Armenian in Mexico City, 1723-31.

Tatiana Seijas, Yale University General Discussion

Concluding Remarks

Khachig Tololyan, Wesleyan University

The Indian Interlude in the Development of Modern Armenian Drama.

Peter Cowe, UCLA

Refreshments

"Azdarar" and Other Armenian Periodicals of India. Osheen Keshishian,
Glendale Community College

Joseph Emin and British Colonial Policy in Calcutta . Mana Kia,
Harvard University

General Discussion

Lunch Recess: 1:00-2:00 p.m.

Saturday Afternoon: (2:00-5:30 p.m.)

Indo-Armenian History and Relations

Chair and Discussant: Houri Berberian (California State University,
Long Beach)

Colonial Counterflows: An Armenian Lady from Agra in London, circa
1610. Michael Fisher, Oberlin College

Khwaja Gorgin Khan: An 18th-Century Armenian General of the Bengal
Army. Bhaswati Bhattacharya, University of Leiden

Notables and Benefactors (with a film on Sir Catchick Paul Chater).

Richard G. Hovannisian, UCLA

Refreshments

Armenian-American GIs and the Armenian Community of India in World
War II. Gregory Aftandilian, Harvard University

The Present State of the Indo-Armenian Community. Armen Baibourtian,
Erevan, First Armenian Ambassador to India

General Discussion

Sunday March 18: (2:00-5:30 p.m.)

Long Distance Merchants and Julfan Trade in the Indian Ocean

Chair and Discussant: Edward A. Alpers, UCLA

French Commercial Ambitions and Armenian Interlocutors in 17th-Century
Asia. Sanjay Subrahmanyam, UCLA

Long Distance Merchants and the Role of Julfan "Networks of Trust".

Sebouh Aslanian, Columbia University

Don Pedro di Zaratte: A Julfan Armenian in Mexico City, 1723-31.

Tatiana Seijas, Yale University

General Discussion

Concluding Remarks

Photographic Exhibit by Richard and Anne Elizabeth Elbrecht, Davis

Date: Sunday, March 18, 2007

Time: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Court of Sciences 50 (Young Hall) UCLA Los Angeles, CA 90095

Cost: Open to the Public at No Charge

Special Instructions Parking: Structure 2 ($8.00), UCLA Entrance,
Hilgard and Westholme Avenues.

For more information please contact Richard Hovanissian

Posted by: Center for European and Eurasian Studies

Sponsor(s): Center for European and Eurasian Studies, UCLA
International Institute, Center for India and South Asia, Department
of History, Armenian Educational Foundation Chair in Modern Armenian
History, G.E. von Grunebaum Center for Near Eastern Studies

ent.asp?eventid=5382

Al-Arab online, UK
March 11 2007

Military’s media `Black List’ prompts probe

A revelation by a Turkish magazine of the existence of a list that
classified journalists on the basis of their perceived attitude towards
Turkey’s powerful military establishment has prompted a judicial inquiry as
well as widespread outrage in the country’s media.

The 17-page report listing journalists depending on their alleged
‘pro-military’ or ‘anti-military’ bias was published on Thursday by the
magazine Nokta.

The Turkish military has not denied the existence of the document and has
launched a judicial probe to discover who leaked the ‘black list’ to the
magazine.

The document, dated November 2006, was prepared by the Office of the Chief
of General Staff Public and Press Relations Bureau and is entitled ‘A
reassessment of accredited press and media organs’.

Journalists and media organisations that want to follow the activities of
the Office of the Chief of General Staff need to be accredited by the
office.

The document lists all the country’s mainstream national broadcast and print
media outlets and journalists, categorising them according to their comments
and reports on the Turkish military.

It also includes comments and recommendations on whether the media
accreditation handed out to individuals should be granted, denied or
revoked.

"The report is a shame for our democracy. It is a new obstacle for freedom
of expression and freedom of press," the main body representing journalists
in the country, the Turkish Journalists Association, said in its response.

Umur Talu, a veteran columnist for the daily Sabah and a renowned critic of
the influence of the military in Turkey asked Friday why he is described as
"treacherous" on the list.

"Is it ‘normal’ for a 21-year-old junior officer to commit suicide in his
military unit because he was being humiliated? No, then why should I be
described as ‘treacherous’ for having reported on it," Talu asked in his
column.

Other famous journalists and columnists that appear on the list in the
‘anti-military’ category include Murat Belge, Mehmet Ali Birand and Can
Dundar. Murdered Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and his weekly Agos
are not included in the document.

Another prominent journalist, Mehmet Altan from the Star daily, said that
while he was scandalised by the existence of the list "there is at least a
group of high-ranking military officials who think that this report is a
serious mistake and that’s why they’ve leaked it."

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other government officials have not
commented on the report.

Media outlets with more radical positions, such as the socialist and
Islamist newspapers and television stations are not given accreditation to
follow the Office of the Chief of General Staff and hence do not are already
not accredited to military’s media events and are not included in the ‘black
list.’

PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services
Address:  Vagharshapat, Republic of Armenia
Contact:  Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian
Tel:  +374-10-517163
Fax:  +374-10-517301
E-Mail:  [email protected]
Website: 
March 11, 2007

The Armenian Pontiff Visits Armenian Church of Bombay

St. Peter Armenian Church, built in Mumbai (Bombay), India in 1796,
currently serves as a house of worship to not only the few remaining
Armenians in the city, but also to the faithful of the Indian Malankara
Syrian Orthodox Church, who use it regularly for their church services as
guests of the Armenian Church.

As his pontifical visit to India was nearing its conclusion, His Holiness
Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, visited the
Armenian Church named after St. Peter the Apostle on the morning of
Saturday, March 3.  His Eminence Geevargehse Mar Coorilos, Metropolitan of
Bombay of the Malankara Orthodox Church, and a delegation of Malankara
priests welcomed the arrival of His Holiness and the pontifical delegation
at the entrance to the church.  A procession of Armenian and Indian priests,
Indian Orthodox faithful and the last three Armenians in Bombay greeted the
entrance of His Holiness with the singing of hymns and the chanting of
psalms.

Once inside, a `Hrashapar’ service was offered by the Armenian priests,
following which His Holiness addressed his message of blessing to the
gathered faithful.  His Holiness offered praise and thanks to Almighty God
for allowing him to visit the distant shores of India during the past ten
days, and to personally witness the Armenian communities of the Far East and
their legacy built throughout the previous centuries.

His Eminence Metropolitan Mar Coorilos welcomed the Pontiff of All Armenians
to Bombay and extended the fraternal greetings and love of His Holiness
Baselios Mar Thoma Didymos I, Catholicos of the East and Malankara
Metropolitan.

The Catholicos of All Armenians presented His Eminence with an episcopal
panagia from Holy Etchmiadzin and commended the service of the Indian
Orthodox priests to the flock entrusted to their care.  His Holiness also
exhorted the gathered Indian faithful to remain steadfast in their Christian
faith and devoted to their holy apostolic church founded by St. Thomas the
Apostle.

His Holiness was accompanied to Bombay by His Eminence Archbishop Aghan
Baliozian, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Australia and New Zealand and
Pontifical Legate to the Far East; Rev. Fr. Vardan Navasardian, member of
the Brotherhood of Holy Etchmiadzin; Rev. Fr. Ktrij Devejian from the Mother
See and Rev. Fr. Hovnan Hakobian as Staff-bearer.

PanARMENIAN.Net

Parliamentary elections have exclusive meaning for Armenia’s future
10.03.2007 14:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Earlier NA Speaker Tigran Torosyan accepted the
delegation at the head of John Huko, the Vice-President on operational
issues of the `Millenium Challenges’ Corporation, the RA NA Press
Office reports. John Huko is in Armenia for the first time. The goal
of his visit is first of all, to acquaint with the realization process
of `Millenium Challenges’ Corporation programs and those responsible
for it, and then – to hold direct and open conversation with Armenian
friends around the upcoming parliamentary elections. The
Vice-President of the American Corporation highly appreciated the
realized works, underlining that Armenia can be proud of program in
action and officials responsible for it. `Millenium Challenges’
program is not only a way to strengthen Armenian-American relations,
but also it is a chance to cut poverty and increase income in
Armenia. John Huko noted that `Millenium Challenges’ Corporation works
only with democratic countries; it uses 11 indexes for the level of
democracy, which are single for all 25 states included in the
framework of `Millenium Challenges’. The sides stressed the importance
of conducting the upcoming parliamentary elections in accordance with
democratic standards. Otherwise of `Millenium Challenges’ programs
will be put under question in Armenia. He expressed hope that
parliamentary election in May will fix positive steps considered with
elections in the past, providing succession of the program.

Tigran Torosyan stressed the importance to realize programs of
`Millenium Challenges’. He also thanked for its creation and first
steps in realization process. Torosyan underlined the importance to
hold parliamentary elections properly, first of all for the sake of
Armenia’s future and development of reforms. The RA NA Speaker also
noted that conducting elections in accordance with democratic norms is
so important, that the continuation of `Millenium Challenges’ program
is incomparable near it and cannot be viewed as a stimulus for
Armenia. Of course, he said, democracy in Armenia has not reached its
perfection, but tendentious estimations, which turn everything upside
down, are not acceptable.

Touching upon the parliamentary elections, T. Torosyan stressed that
they really have exclusive importance for Armenia’s future and
continuation of reforms: also after elections provisions concerning
political system in the result of constitutional reforms will be put
in force.

Génocide arménien : les archives ottomanes manquantes

Publié le : 10-03-2007

Info Collectif VAN – _www.collectifvan.org_
( g/) – Info Collectif VAN –
– Le Collectif VAN vous propose le Communiqué de
Presse en anglais de l’Institut Gomidas, en date du 7 mars
2007. L’historien Ara Sarafian avait récemment proposé au Professeur
Yusuf Halaçoglu, l’historien officiel d’Ankara, d’étudier ensemble les
déportations arméniennes de 1915, en se basant sur le cas de la ville
de Harput (un des centres intellectuels et économiques arméniens les
plus importants avant 1915).

Nora Vosbigian explique ici comment Ara Sarafian a vu, après
l’acceptation initiale d’Halaçoglu, son offre refusée pour cause
d’absence d’archives turques sur le sujet… Halaçoglu lui, s’exprime
sur Atv channel et _Hurriyet_
( 316.asp?sd=3D2) pour dire que
Sarafian a finalement fait machine arrière, pour cause de pressions de
la diaspora arménienne… Le Communiqué du Gomidas Institute apporte
un éclairage très intéressant sur le sérieux des propositions turques
d’ouvrir les archives ottomanes sur le génocide arménien de 1915… No
comment.

Report

Missing Ottoman Archival Records on the Armenian Genocide, 1915

by Nora Vosbigian

London, 7 March 2007: Today the Gomidas Institute issued its third
statement on its proposal to work on a case study with Turkish
historians regarding the treatment of Armenians in Harput in 1915.1
The Institute’s latest statement follows a comment made by Dr. Yusuf
Halaço?lu, the head of the Turkish Historical Society, that vital
Ottoman records on the 1915 deportation of Armenians–including in
Harput–do not exist in Turkish archives today.

These "non-existent" records are directly related to two Ottoman
decrees which Turkish official historians have claimed regulated the
deportation and resettlement of Ottoman Armenians in 1915. These were
the 30 May 1915 regulations on deportations,2 and the 10 June 1915
regulations on the resettlement of deportees, the liquidation of their
properties, and their compensation in their places of exile.3

The Gomidas Institute had asked, based on these regulations, to
examine the registers showing details of Armenians who were deported
from the Harput plain, as well as the resettlement records accounting
for the fate of these deportees further a field. According to these
regulations, all deported Armenian had to be registered, person by
person (or household by household), villageby village; the properties
of deportees had to be recorded and liquidated; when the deported were
resettled in their places of exile, they had to be compensated in
proportion to their original assets. According to these regulations,
Ottoman officials had to generate meticulous deportation, resettlement
and compensation records which accounted for Armenians who were
deported in 1915.

On Monday 26 February 2007 Dr. Halaço?lu appeared on CNN- Turk’s
"Manþet" programme where he stated, categorically, that the Ottoman
records the Gomidas Institute had asked to examine did not
exist. Halaço?lu stated that : "He [Sarafian] well knows about the
archives. He also knows that there are no records for each village
listing persons by name. There are no such records. If there were,
they would not pose a problem for us. It would be better to produce
them."4 To date Dr. Halaço?lu has not contacted and explained himself
tothe Gomidas Institute.

It is not clear how Dr. Halaço?lu could make such a categorical
statement about the non-existence of the Ottoman records we had asked
for, given the texts of the Ottoman regulations governing deportations
in 1915, or the fact that there are many Ottoman archives in Turkey,
and not all Ottoman records in these archives are catalogued. Until
there is further clarification, Dr. Halaço?lu’s statement only raises
some fundamental questions:

1. Were Ottoman regulations on the 1915 deportations implemented
according to the letter of the law? If so, why are we told that the
registers related to this mass transfer of people are missing? Are all
records missing, for the whole Empire, in both local as well as
central archives?

2. If these regulations were not implemented, how was the movement of
Armenians, the liquidation of their properties, and the resettlement
of deportees regulated? Is it conceivable that none of these
regulations were implemented for the whole of the Ottoman Empire from
Erzeroum to Yozgat, Izmit and Kayseri? If so, where is the archival
trail in Ottoman archives associatedwith the actual course of events?

3. Is it possible that no records were kept for either deportation or
resettlement? If so, was this the case for the whole of the Ottoman
Empire, and why were no records kept?

4. If records were kept and then destroyed, why and when were they
destroyed? And were they destroyed for the whole of the Ottoman
Empire, inboth local as well as central archives in Turkey?

5. Is it possible that Dr. Halaço?lu might be mistaken? Might some of
the records we have asked for exist? Is it possible that there might
be deportation records, as well as records related to the liquidation
of Armenian properties, but no corresponding resettlement records?

According to Ara Sarafian (Gomidas Institute, London), "Primary
sources outside of Turkey indicate that the 1915 deportation of
Armenians and the liquidation of their properties were regulated by
Ottoman state authorities. Armenians were deported under the auspices
of Ottoman officials. And most deportees were killed through
privations and outright massacres on their way or in their places of
exile (most notably Der Zor). Our sources indicate that there never
was a resettlement programme as historians defending the official
Turkish thesis suggest."

The Gomidas Institute hopes that Dr. Halaço?lu will explain why he
thinks that the Ottoman deportation and resettlement registers the
Gomidas Institute requested do not exist–especially those on Harput
and its environs.

NOTES

1. For the first two Gomidas Institute statements see
htm and
htm For the third
statement (in Turkish) see
eTurkish.htm

2 Ottoman Ministry of Interior, Department of Settlement of Tribes and
Immigrants, "Regulations Related to Settlement and Board and Lodging
and Other Affairs of Armenians Relocated to Other Places Because of
War Conditions and Emergency Political Requirements, May 30, 1915" in
Turkish Prime Ministry Directorate-General of Press and Information,
Documents on Ottoman Armenians, Vol. 2 [n.d.], Document no. 12,
pp. 91-93. See copy
ions.htm

3 "The Regulation Concerning the Management of the Land and Properties
Belonging to Armenians Who Have Been Sent Elsewhere as a Result of the
State of War and the Extraordinary Political Situation" in Turkish
Prime Ministry Directorate-General of Press and Information, Documents
[on Ottoman Armenians], Vol. 1 [n.d.], Document no. 28, pp. 76-80. See
copy
gulations.htm

4 The Turkish transcript of what Dr. Halacoglu said is as follows:
"Ar?ivlerin nas?l oldu?unu kendisi [Sarafian] gayet iyi biliyor. Orada
herköyden tek tek, isim isim kimlerin nakledilmi? oldu?unu
bulamayaca??n? kendisi de biliyor. Öyle bir kay?t zaten yok. olmu?
olsa zaten bizim için problemolmaz, daha güzel ortaya konabilir."

Massis Weekly Online

VOLUME 27, NO. 7 (1307)
SATURDAY, MARCH 10, 2007
—————
– S. D. Hunchakian Party To Contest the May 12 Parliamentary Elections
Separately
– Free Vote ?Key to EU-Armenia Ties?
– SDHP "Sarkis Dkhrouni" Union Presents Results of Corruption Survey
– More Congressmen Sign on HR 106
– ACA Announces Endorsements For Glendale Elections
– Glendale HOMENMEN Chapter Ladies Auxiliary Open House
– Hrant Dink and Armenians in Turkey
– Letter to the Editor of Asbarez
————-

– S. D. Hunchakian Party To Contest the May 12 Parliamentary Elections
Separately

YEREVAN — In an internet web conference organized by the Social
Democrat Hunchakian party?s central board and joined by S.D.H.P
regional board members from six continents, S.D.H.P Armenia
chairwoman, Lyudmila Sargsian, notified the participants that the
Social Democrat Hunchakian Party has registered with RA Central
Electoral Commission and will partake in a proportional system of
the upcoming May parliamentary elections.
Sargsian also addressed the lack of opposition forces to agree upon a
united front against the ruling regime. The S.D.H.P. has been
preparing and organizing throughout Armenia for the past three years
and has chosen to conform itself to the proportional system and not to
take part in the single mandate electoral system. This decision was
made by the party to insure that it does not clash with other
oppositional like-minded individuals and dilute the oppositional votes.
During the elections, Sargsian stated that the 120 year strong S.D.H.P
will adhere to the platform that was agreed upon in the 18th General
Assembly of S.D.H.P World Congress. With the existing situation of
corruption in Armenia, economic electoral oligarchical system,
distrust in judicial bodies, and based on the S. D. H. Party?s
socialist and democratic ideology, the party has concluded that the
establishment of true democracy in Armenia is the most important
endeavor. To achieve economic and social justice in Armenia there must
be democracy, the foundation of which is the peaceful change of
authority through free and just elections.
S.D.H.P considers the principle of the free self-determination of
nations the basis for the resolution of the Artsakh question. The S.
D. Hunchakian Party considers the unification of Mountainous Karabakh
with Armenia or its acquisition of independent status as appropriate.
During negotiations, any land belonging to Armenia cannot be subject
to deals or exchange, either in the form of area, nor as ?passageway?
or ?route.? Any agreement on the resolution of the Artsakh issue must
bear the signature of the legitimate authorities in Artsakh and merit
the consent of Artsakh?s populace.
S.D.H.P considers the duty of the next parliament to focus on
preserving and enhancing national, educational and cultural programs
within the State and the maintaining of an unrelenting stance in the
pursuance of the Armenian Cause.
Official Armenian-Turkish discussion must be conditional on the
recognition of the Genocide.
The future parliament must better extend its national-spiritual
mission, and operate to ensure that Armenian religious centers are
within a non-partisan and non-political existence.
The social, economic, civic and educational demands of the Javakhk
Armenians are just and legitimate. These demands must become a
national concern and be insured and addressed by the Armenian
government.
With the confines of a free and fair electoral process, Sargsian
insured that the 120 year old Social Democrat Hunchakian party will
make great inroads within the next parliament. Twenty nine parties are
competing for 90 proportial-based seats and 173 politicians are
running for the remaining 41 seats that are awarded to individual
candidates.

– Free Vote ?Key to EU-Armenia Ties?

YEREVAN — Armenia will miss an important opportunity to deepen its
relationship with the European Union if it fails to ensure the freedom
and fairness of its parliamentary elections, a visiting senior EU
diplomat warned on Friday.
?It will mean that an opportunity has been lost to build, in the short
and medium terms, a firm relationship based on mutual values and
mutual trust,? Peter Semneby, the EU?s special representative to the
South Caucasus, said of a possible repeat of serious irregularities in
the elections slated for May 12.
Preparations for the crucial polls dominated the agenda of Semneby
latest trip to Yerevan, which involved talks with Prime Minister
Andranik Markarian and other Armenian officials.
Markarian?s office quoted the Brussels-based diplomat as saying that
their proper conduct will be ?critical? for Armenia?s democratization
and European integration. Markarian was reported to assure him that
his government has ?the desire and the will? to hold a first-ever
Armenian election recognized as democratic by the West.
?I haven?t gotten any guarantees, but I have a very strong sense that
the authorities are aware of the importance of the elections,? Semneby
told RFE/RL after the talks. He stressed the fact that it will be the
first major ballot since Armenia?s and neighboring Azerbaijan?s and
Georgia?s inclusion in the EU?s European Neighborhood Policy (ENP)
framework.

– SDHP "Sarkis Dkhrouni" Union Presents Results of Corruption Survey

YEREVAN –In response to the denial of corruption at Universities in
Armenia, the Social Democrat Hunchakian party ?Sarkis Dkhrouni? youth
association conducted a press conference on Tuesday, March 6
presenting evidence disproving the claims made by University leaders.
The youth organization brought forth the rsults of anonymous survey
they conducted which was distributed to students several months ago.
Five percent, about 2000 students, responded to the survey which asked
whether they thought their institution engaged in corrupt practices.
Of every 20 students, 19 admit that corruption is prevalent in their
University. Five percent of those students were from Film and Drama
Universities, 18 percent from Cultural Universities, 42 percent from
Yerevan State University, 75 percent from Linguistics Universities, 79
percent from Teaching Universities, Public Universities made up 81
percent, Medical Universities were 86 percent and Agricultural
Universities made up 96 percent.
The Sarkis Dkhrouni youth association presented these findings to
Levon Lazarian, Minister of Education who has since accepted the
claims. Nareg Sarkissian, Chairman of the youth association stated
that the Minister has called for a formation of an independent board
to investigate the matter closely. Yet the students are once again
facing the denial of the truth.
The first press conference regarding this issue was held on Dec. 10,
2006. Although the Minister of Education has cooperated with the
Sarkis Dkhrouni youth association, board members the Yerevan State
Institution of higher education have yet to accept that corruption is
lurking on university campuses in Armenia.

– More Congressmen Sign on HR 106

The Armenian Council of America Ohio and Texas branchs have expressed
gratitude to heir respective members of Congress for sponsoring House
Resolution 106. The Resolution calls upon the President to ensure that
the foreign policy of the United States reflects appropriate
understanding and sensitivity concerning issues related to human
rights, ethnic cleansing, and genocide documented in the U.S. record
relating to the Armenian Genocide.
On March 1 Congressman Al Green of Texas co-sponsored H.R. 106
becoming the eighth congressman from Texas to do so. On the very same
day Congressman Steven LaTourette from Ohio co-sponsored H.R. 106,
becoming the fourth congressman from Ohio sponsor the House Resolution.
In a statement issued by the Armenian Council of America, the Texas
chapter thanked Congressman Green for co-sponsoring the current
legislation. ?We have been good friends of the congressman and thank
him for his deeds towards H.R. 106.? stated Sarkis Ohanian, chairman
of Texas chapter of the ACA.
Dr. Avedis Kazanjian, Chairman of the ACA mid east states, also
conveyed his enthusiasm in gaining the support of Congressman
LaTourette towards the legislation.
Both recognized that gaining the support of congressional members with
little or no Armenian American constituency has proven to be
increasingly challenging.
?Currently there are only eight out of 32 members of Congress from
Texas who have signed on to H.R. 106,?stated Ohanian. ?With the
increasing pressure of the Turkish government and the fact that the
current administration is headed by a Texan, it has become a
tremendously difficult uphill battle in confronting our (Texas)
legislators to do the right thing,? he added. Dr. Kazanjian also
confirmed that currently there are only four out of 18 members of
Congress from Ohio who have signed on to the legislation. ?Yes it is
an uphill battle, yet we as Armenians have gone through fiercer
struggles and have prevailed.?
?As stated before, the Armenian Genocide resolution will not pass
without the full support of congressional members that do not have a
substantial constituency of Armenian Americans,?
declared Peter Darakjian, Executive Director of the ACA. ?The Armenian
Cause is continuously facing obstacles from all directions. The
current administration is against our Cause, the State Department is
stuck in the cold war mentality adhering to the needs of Turkey, the
Turkish government and its well funded lobbying firms along with the
Turkish media are decimating false information to combat the truth and
our legislation.?
Darakjian expects set backs facing Armenian related legislation in
Congress, such us the delay within the Foreign Relations Committee due
to committee ranking member Richard Lugar?s request that consideration
of S. Res. 65 be held over until the next committee business meeting
will be overcome.
?With the perseverance of Armenian Americans exposing historical truth
we can overcome all obstacles placed against us.? conveyed Darakjian.

– ACA Announces Endorsements For Glendale Elections

GLENDALE — For the upcoming Glendale City Municipal elections on
April 3, the Armenian Council of America-PAC on March 6 announced its
endorsement of current Glendale Unified School Board member Greg
Krikorian and Glendale community activist and former Public
Information Officer for the Glendale Police Department, Chahe
Keuroghelian, for the two City Council seats.
The ACA also announced its endorsement of Elizabeth Manasserian for
one of the two open seats in the Glendale Unified School District
Governing Board.
As for the Glendale Community College Board of Trustees elections, the
ACA is endorsing Tony Tartaglia, a current member of the GCC Board of
Trustees.
?After carefully reviewing the backgrounds of these candidates and
analyzing their views on certain issues relevant to the
Armenian-American community, we can wholeheartedly say that they are
the most qualified candidates,? stated ACA Executive Director Peter
Darakjian. ?We encourage everyone in the community to vote for our
endorsed candidates because we believe they will best represent our
interests as a whole.?
Additionally, ACA board chairman Vasken Khodanian stated, ?Having
worked with these candidates at different capacities in the past and
knowing them on a personal level gives us the confidence we need to
make a sound judgement on their performance in the future.?
Besides endorsing the above officials, ACA is also actively engaged in
educating the Armenian-American community about the importance of
voting including conducting voter registration and urging every
citizen to fulfill their civic duty.
The Armenian Council of America-PAC is a non-partisan federally
registered political action committee dedicated to educating the
Armenian-American community in local political affairs,
as well as actively pursuing Armenian-American participation in their
respective local governments, to support political candidates who
share the values of the Armenian American community.

– Glendale HOMENMEN Chapter Ladies Auxiliary Open House

GLENDALE — The Armenian Athletic Association ?Homenmen? women?s
auxiliary Glendale chapter organized an open house for Homenmen
athletes and their parents on Sunday March 4 at the Glendale central
library auditorium. The event was was attended by young athletes and
parents who wanted to learn more about the organization and its
direction.
Seta Khodanian, master of ceremonies, briefly discussed the 86 year
old history of Homenmen in general and more specifically talked about
Homenmen?s activities in the greater southern California area and in
particular the city of Glendale. She also addressed some of the short
and long range plans of the organization.
Homenmen Glendale chairman Vartan Kojababian addressed the hardship
that parents, community leaders and the youth have gone through in the
past to make Homenmen not only a successful athletic organization, but
also a learning step for youth to partake in professionalism. He
stated that Homenmen creates a platform for discussion in activity
giving youth the necessary skills to become well-informed, active
members and leaders of their community.
Armenian Athletic Association ?Homenmen? women?s auxiliary Glendale
chapter chairwomen Rozin DerTavitian addressed the audience on the
meaning of being a Homenmen member, and following its credo ?Sound
Body, and a Sound Mind.? She added that those who have participated in
Homenmen throughout their youth and into their adulthood have achieved
a higher level of success and happiness in both their personal and
professional lives. Everyone was encouraged to proactively recruit
their friends and family into the organization.

– Hrant Dink and Armenians in Turkey
By Hratch Tchilingirian

The assassination of the Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink on 19
January 2007 and its aftermath highlighted both change and resistance
to change in Turkish society. To understand how far Turkey has
travelled in the past generation, Hratch Tchilingirian examines the
role of Hrant Dink himself in the context of the Armenian community of
which he was voice, critic, and emblem.

On 18 October 1994 a press conference called by the then Patriarch of
the Armenian Church, Karekin Kazanjian, was held at the Armenian
patriarchate in Kumkapi, Istanbul. It was organised to correct what
the church saw as misinformation amounting to a slander campaign
against the Armenian church in particular and the Armenian community
in Turkey in general. The ?highlight? of this campaign was an attempt
by the patriarchate to voice protest against false, even lethal,
accusations in Turkish media and political circles that Armenian
clergymen were supporting Kurdish Workers? Party (PKK) terrorists in
their secessionist struggle against the Turkish state.
A photograph allegedly depicting an Armenian priest in the company of
PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, widely distributed on posters, was a key
instrument of these accusations. Indeed, shouted slogans such as Apo,
Ermeni pici (?Apo [Öcalan?s nickname], Armenian bastard?) were at the
time commonly heard during nationalist demonstrations and street
protests.
The patriarchate?s communiqué on the matter categorically denied the
existence of any ties between the Armenian community in Turkey and any
terrorist organisation, and explained that the priest in the relevant
photo was not a cleric of the Armenian church. The document went on to
condemn such anti-Armenian insinuations in both print and broadcast
media, expressing the serious concern that such false rumours,
assumptions and misrepresentations were endangering the Armenian
community in Turkey and making the lives of individual Armenians
difficult.
The press conference ? attended by some seventy Turkish and foreign
journalists – was a tense affair. Several journalists harassed the
patriarch with presumptuous questions laced with innuendo about
contentious issues, including the PKK and the Armenian Secret Army for
the Liberation of Armenia
(Asala) – a small, Lebanon-based terrorist group that had killed
thirty-four Turks (mainly diplomats) between 1975 and 1983, mainly in
western Europe. (Asala had no presence, links or any type of backing
among Armenians in Turkey, and minimal support even among diaspora
Armenians).
As the interrogators became increasingly belligerent, a tall figure
forced himself into the heart of the journalistic melèe. ?As a member
of the patriarchate?s press office, I would like to answer that
question?, Hrant Dink announced. He continued: ?Respectable
representatives of the press, we are trying to shake off from our
shoulders a discomfort which causes pressure. It is for this reason
that we are trying to voice our protest against a false claim. Apart
from that, all your questions have been answered many times before.
The Armenians of Turkey are not terrorists and they have never
provided aid to terrorism, from whichever direction that may come.
From now on too, this is the way it is going to be. Armenians will
never support terrorism.
As citizens of this country, we would like to live in peace and
tranquility. This is the message of this press conference. … The
Armenians, all Armenians in the world, especially Armenians in Turkey,
at this moment have only one preoccupation: peace, peace, and peace?
(see Marmara [Istanbul], 19 October 1994).
This was the moment Hrant Dink fully entered public life. The
occasion, the pressure, the times themselves were such that he chose –
publicly, confidently and courageously – to address the ?discomforts?
and ?burdens? put upon his community by the state and a highly
politicised media. It was the moment Hrant Dink openly began to deal
with the dilemma of being simultaneously a citizen
of one country, Turkey, while being part of another nation, Armenia.

A time of silence
It was never going to be easy, for the challenge was at once
institutional, legal, and political. The Armenian community, like that
of other minorities in Turkey, experienced shame, humiliation,
harassment and intimidation across the long decades from the 1950s to
the 1990s without being able to speak up in its defence ? and in a
very different atmosphere to later controversies over Article 301 and
even minimal debate about the genocide of 1915. The Armenian community
in Turkey in this period was characterised by its reclusive existence
and collective silence.
The defining institutions of the Armenian community in Turkey were and
are the church and the school. Both faced (and face) perennial
problems that kept Hrant Dink and his colleagues awake at night. The
interference and heavy handedness of the Turkish government in the
Armenian community?s process of electing a patriarch (in 1990, and
again in 1998) were among the arduous legal problems enmeshing this
key Armenian body. On the second occasion Hrant wrote: ?We are sad …
The (Armenian) community is deeply hurt by the uncertainty created by
the escalation of the senseless crisis about the election of an acting
patriarch. These are trying days … We are observing with shame? (see
?Uzgunuz?, Agos, 21 August 1998).
The situation with the Armenian schools was (and is) no better. Hrant
wrote many columns about the state of Armenian schools in Turkey, and
took special interest in their administration. While criticising his
own community for its shortcomings, he also berated the Turkish
government for imposing numerous administrative restrictions on
minority (and not only Armenian) schools.
Hrant passionately recorded the constant indignities experienced by
Armenian educators. In August 1998 he wrote: ?If I am not mistaken,
it was three years ago … One of the vice-directors of the ministry
of national education?s Istanbul office – who was later convicted of
corruption and bribe-taking – said the following to the
?vice-principals? he appointed (whom the minority schools call
?Turkish vice-principals?): ?You are our eyes and ears … You are to
inform us of even the minutest mistakes that these people make.? He
said this in the presence of the minority school principals, with
total disregard for their dignity and common courtesy.
?… And what was I fantasising all these years … With my
45-year-old brain, I was thinking: ?would, one day, a minister of
national education start the ceremony for the new school year in a
minority school?? Sweet thoughts … My naïveté … Sorry …? (see
?Kinkel ve Valilik?, Agos, 21 August 1998 ? translated excerpts posted
on ).

A voice of dignity
Hrant Dink and his colleagues were symbols as well as agents of change
in relation to the Armenian community in Turkey. They were determined
to express the indignation and resentment they experienced as citizens
of the Republic of Turkey. If society and the political system did not
allow them to voice their fears, concerns, and hopes for their
community and for Turkey, the silence surrounding them – they
believed – must be made audible.
It was to a large extent this combination – of the hunger to speak and
the desire to address the ?existential? problems surrounding the
Armenian church and educational establishments – that sparked the
creation of the bilingual weekly newspaper Agos in April 1996.
The five colleagues who founded Agos were: Diran Bakar, a lawyer; Luiz
Bakar, also a lawyer and (since 1994) the spokesperson of the
patriarchate; Harutiun Sesetian, a businessman; Anna Turay, a
public-relations professional; and Hrant Dink, who at the time owned a
bookshop.
The founding members – as is the case with any equivalent innovative
project – were to have their differences in subsequent years. But at
its heart, Agos (and Hrant in particular) remained consistent in the
effort to open channels of communication and dialogue between the
reclusive – and at times isolated – Armenian community and Turkish
society.
Hrant defined one of the newspaper?s purposes as ?(trying) to identify
and explain our problems to the government and to Turkish society?,
while acknowledging that ?because of this, we sometimes have problems?
(Armenia International Magazine, 11/3, March 2000). His core belief
was that prejudices could be overcome by education and dialogue.
The target of this education and dialogue was not just
misunderstanding and prejudice in Turkish society, but the Armenian
community itself. Hrant?s critical discourse about the Armenian
community, and especially the Armenian patriarchate, was unpopular,
costing him supporters and even friends.
In June 2001, for example, on the occasion of the 1,700th anniversary
of Armenian Christianity, he wrote: ?The Armenian church has suffered
divisions throughout history and it is evident that it has not learned
from its own history.
The ?one nation – one church? rule, which has been repeated almost
everywhere during these last years, is nothing but a slogan void of
content? (see ?Spiritual Chess?, Agos, 1 June 2004 – translated from
Turkish by Anahit Dagci). At the same time, many found his passion,
genuine concern and sincerity disarming. Most people in the Armenian
community saw Agos as a courageous publication where issues related to
Armenian identity and community were discussed with refreshing
openness, reason and a genuine desire to build bridges across large
divides – whether within Turkey, with Armenia or with the diaspora.
In the course of this work, Hrant came to a profound realisation: that
the resolution of the problems of the Armenian community in Turkey was
intimately related to the progress of tolerance, democracy and freedom
in Turkey.

Armenians, here and there
Dogu Ergil observed after Hrant?s death that he had ?aimed to promote
the idea that there are other ethnic-cultural groups in Turkey than
Turks and Muslims, and (that) they can very well blend into the nation
cleansed of stereotypes and biases?. Hrant wanted, said Ergil, to
?defend Armenians against majority fanaticism in Turkey and to defend
Turks/ Turkey against the fanaticism and hypocrisy of foreigners and
diaspora Armenians? (see ??, EU Turkey Civic Commission, 25 January
2007).
In recent years, the ?Armenian issue? – as the problem of the genocide
is referred to in Turkey – had indeed become a central theme in
Hrant?s public discourse. The centrality of the ?Armenian issue?, in
fact, has come to cast a shadow over the other problems of the
Armenian community in Turkey: ownership of property, community
foundations, education of clergy, school administration,
and church elections among them. (Why, for example, should the affairs
of minorities in Turkey still be ?administered? by Turkey?s council of
ministers, interior ministry, the security and intelligence agencies,
and the foreign ministry?).
If the central, heated question of genocide came to dominate
discussion of Armenians and Turkey, it is one that Hrant Dink and a
considerable segment of the Armenian Diaspora could not agree on. On
the eve of the 24 April commemorations in 2002, for example, he
addressed members of the Armenian
diaspora in France in an interview with L?Express newspaper.
?Do not seek Armenian identity among the 1915 graves?, he advised. ?I
am ready to discuss all issues with you … I am proud to be a Turkish
Armenian. I want to represent, with my newspaper, the rebirth of this
society. Armenia will never be safe unless Turkey achieves
democratization. I believe Turkey may be a chance for that young state
which is on the brink of drowning. Tomorrow, thanks to Turkey, Armenia
will get the chance to become neighbors with the European Union.
Turkey is Armenia?s only chance? (Turkish Daily News, 23 April 2002).
More than the semantics of the issue, Hrant?s approach to the issue of
1915 and Turkey-Armenia relations focused on the substance of
reconciliation.
?I know what happened to my grandparents?, he told AFP. ?It does not
matter what you called it: genocide, massacres or deportation? (Agence
France Presse, 8 October 2000). Hrant strongly believed – to the
dismay of many in the diaspora – that the more essential thing was to
influence Turkish public opinion. ?The winning of the empathy and
compassion of the Turkish population is far more important than the
adoption of Armenian resolutions in hundreds of parliaments
elsewhere?. Hrant spent considerable time and energy in seeking to
persuade the diaspora that there is a new dynamic and a new openness
in Turkey, involving an unprecedented interest in and discussion of
Armenian issues. He said that ?this process has been developing very
slowly, just like the democratisation of Turkey?, in a way that
encouraged him to believe that ?the taboo (of 1915) too will be broken?.
Yet anyone who is familiar with ?breaking taboos? in Turkey knows the
extreme dangers involved in such a process.
Hrant himself was well aware of the possible consequences: ?We never
deny our own history. But Armenians (in Turkey) are unable to discuss
it for fear it will harm the community?s existence?
(see Ayla Jean Yackley, ?Turks confront dark chapter of Armenian
massacres?, Reuters, 26 April 2005).
In his response to this predicament, Hrant displayed one of his
largest virtues: courage. As he wrote in open Democracy in 2005:
?Where fear is dominant, it produces symptoms of resistance to change
at all levels of society. The more some people yearn and work for
openness and enlightenment, the more others who are afraid of such
changes struggle to keep society closed. In Turkey, the legal cases
against Hrant Dink, Orhan Pamuk, Ragip Zarakolu or Murat Belge are
examples of how the breaking of every taboo causes panic in the end.
This is especially true of the Armenian issue: the greatest of all
taboos in Turkey, one that was present at the creation of the state
and which represents the principal ?other? of Turkish national
identity? (??, 13 December 2005).
Hrant Dink ?was Turkey in its complexity?, wrote Dogu Ergil. ?He was a
Turk against Armenian extremism and an Armenian against Turkish
extremism.?
The day of Hrant Dink?s funeral was the evidence of how far Turkey had
travelled since that press conference at Istanbul?s Patriarchate in
1994. More than twelve years on, the Ermeni pic epithet hurled by
nationalists was overtaken by the cries of Hepimiz Ermeniz (?We are
all Armenians!?) in the throats of tens of thousands of Turks. Hrant
himself, in his life as much as his death, had played an enormous role
in bringing about that change. He opened the door to a future that
Armenians and Turks must find together.

OpenDemocracy.net

Hratch Tchilingirian is associate
director of the Eurasia Research
Programme at the Judge Business
School, Cambridge University

– Letter to the Editor of Asbarez

After centuries of being subjugated by foreigners, for the past 15
years we have finally become the masters of our own domain, capable of
shaping our own common destiny. Needless to say, the many centuries of
subjugation should serve as a powerful lesson for us to work closer
with each other, in order shape a worthwhile future for ourselves and
generations to come.
Thus, it is utterly incomprehensible as to why an Armenian would label
his fellow kin, who do not share his views, as ?a?holes?, ?idiots?,
?traitors?, who are ?rife with absurdity?, exhibit ?shameless style?,
?emit moribund rales? and who ?ought to be in rehab?. Unfortunately,
that is what Mr. Garen Yegparian has stated in his article published
in the February 24, 2007 issue of your publication. It truly saddens
us to find out that on the very same day of Hrant Dink?s
assassination, a man who championed dialogue even between enemies, Mr.
Yegparian has gone to the vigil not to pay his respects to the fallen
martyr, but to count how many people were in attendance.
The history of human civilization has shown that real progress is
achievable only through the clash of differing opinions and not by the
imposition of one?s views over others.
While we strongly condemn Mr. Yegparian?s vitriolic diatribes and
disagree with his views, we would not call for him to be put into
rehab, but rather be showcased as a role model. To achieve progress,
some role models ought to be followed, while others should be avoided
at all cost. Mr. Yegparian falls in the latter category.

Respectfully,
Gaidz Youth Organization

—
Massis Weekly Online
MassisWeekly.com
1060 N. Allen Ave, Suite 203
Pasadena, CA 91104
Tel. 626.797.7680
Fax. 626.797.6863

TURKEY: US MUSLIM LEADER URGES WITHDRAWAL FROM IRAQ, VOWS TO FIGHT ARMENIAN BILL

Anatolia News Agency, Turkey
March 6 2007

Ankara, 6 March: American Muslim leader Wallace Deen Mohammed, who
is currently in Turkey as a guest of Justice and Development Party
(AKP) Deputy Egemen Bagis, called on US President George W. Bush and
other state officials to withdraw from Iraq.

Mohammed and Bagis held a joint press conference at the Turkish
parliament on Tuesday [6 March].

Bagis praised Mohammed, saying, "He is an outstanding spiritual
and opinion leader for Muslims in the USA," adding that Mohammed
disseminated Islam’s peaceful, modern and democratic message to the
world from the USA.

Bagis noted that Mohammed will support Turkey against the bill on
so-called Armenian genocide in the US Congress.

On the other hand, Mohammed said he is in Turkey for the third time,
noting that he learned a lot about Turkey from his father.

Asked whether he would lobby for Turkey in the US Congress against
Armenian claims, Mohammed recalled that for the first time in USA a
black person was elected a US congressman and added that they would
have necessary initiatives to help their all coreligionists.

Upon a question on Iraq, Mohammed said he once supported American
troops in Iraq, however, he now regrets his decision when he saw what
has happened in Iraq.

OSCE MG FRENCH CO-CHAIR TO ARRIVE IN YEREVAN TODAY

DeFacto Agency, Armenia
March 6 2007

According to the information PanARMENIAN.Net received at the press
office of France’s embassy in RA, March 6-7 the OSCE Minsk group
French Co-Chair Bernard Fassier will be in Armenia.

In the course of the visit the French diplomat will also pay a call to
Baku. The purpose of Bernard Fassier’s visit is to discuss the details
of a meeting of RA and AR FMs Vardan Oskanian and Elmar Mammadyarov
expected in Geneva in mid-March.

To note, the sitting of the UN Human Rights Council with the
participation of FMs of Armenia and Azerbaijan will be held in Geneva
March 13-14.

POTI-KAVKAZ TRAIN-FERRY TO BE LAUNCHED TILL APRIL 10

PanARMENIAN.Net
06.03.2007 17:50 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Poti-Kavkaz train-ferry, which connects
Armenia with Russia, will be launched till April 10, Co-Chair of
Armenian-Russian inter-governmental commission on economic cooperation,
Armenian Defense Minister Serzh Sargsyan told journalists in Moscow in
the result of his meeting with Russian Co-Chair of commission, Minister
of Transport Igor Levitin. "We agreed that the train-ferry will work
not late than on April 10," S. Sargsyan stated adding that during
his talks with I. Levitin the issue to launch not only a train-ferry,
but also a car-ferry was discussed, Armenian Public Television reports.