Author: Vorskanian Yeghisabet

The Forum, ND
May 9 2004

Other views: Armenian genocide examined
By Anna Hovhannisyan, The Forum

The Ottoman Empire carried out the annihilation of the Armenians, a
nation that accepted Christianity the first in the world in 301 A.D.

Out of a total of 2.5 million Armenians, 1.5 million were killed.

Abdul Hamid II had 300,000 Armenians slaughtered in 1885, which could
be considered the beginning of the Armenian genocide. In 1909, 30,000
Armenians were slaughtered in Adana. Upon a premeditated plan, the
ruling party of Turkey carried out the annihilation of the Armenians
in the Empire.

And this genocide is forgotten. Many countries in the world deny the
genocide of Armenians. Thirty-three states of America have recognized
it, and 166 senators and congressmen of the United States signed the
letter to President George Bush urging him to recognize the Armenian
genocide.

Leaving crimes unpunished is a prerequisite for new ones. Proof of
this is obvious as Hitler said to his generals before the Holocaust:
“Who after all remembers the extermination of Armenians?”

The movie “Ararat” about the Armenian genocide will be presented
Tuesday at 7 p.m., at Minnesota State University Moorhead, Comstock
Memorial Union, room 227.

“Ararat,” Atom Egoyan’s mysterious drama about the horrors of the
largely unknown Armenian genocide in Turkey, unrolls through a film
within the film.

The members of a film crew struggle with their own respective
interpretations of the past as they make a docudrama about the
Armenian holocaust.

Hovhannisyan is a mass communication student at Minnesota State
University Moorhead.

E-mail [email protected]

The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec)
May 8, 2004 Saturday Final Edition

Armenian tears flow over genocide vote: First world war killings
recognized. Liberal political reforms, allowing MPs to vote with
their heart, helped pass the bill

by: BRENDA BRANSWELL

Girair Basmadjian remembers the sadness that hung over family
gatherings when he was a child.

“Everybody used to cry,” said Basmadjian, 62, a Montreal
ophthalmologist.

The source of their sorrow was all the absent relatives. Basmadjian
knew his grandfather but never met the man’s siblings. His aunt and
uncles were among numerous family members who died in the mass
killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during the First World
War.

Since the 1980s, Basmadjian, president of the Armenian National
Committee of Canada, and others have lobbied Ottawa to recognize the
killings as “genocide” instead of using adjectives like “calamity” to
describe the atrocities.

Now many in the Armenian community are savouring their recent
victory. A private member’s motion adopted in the House of Commons
last month recognized the Armenian genocide of 1915 and condemned it
as an act of inhumanity.

Retired Montreal engineer Robert Kouyoumdjian, who lost 32 family
members in the genocide, called it a “a huge relief.”

Kouyoumdjian likened it to a burial garment for the Armenians who
were interred in ditches and mass graves. “I told myself they finally
have a shroud,” he said.

Describing the bittersweet elation in his community, Norair
Serengulian, head of the Armenian National Committee of Quebec,
suggests it represents “a step closer to a collective healing.”

When they began pushing for the recognition of the genocide,
Basmadjian said, people told him he was paddling upstream.

“At the time I used to say, ‘Well, I’m not rowing against the
current. I’m rowing against the falls,’ ” he recalled, with a laugh.

The committee also sharpened its lobbying tactics. In 1999, when the
subject came before a parliamentary committee, the Armenian National
Committee assembled a six-inch-thick document backing up its
insistence that a genocide occurred.

“So this time, in order for them to read it, we made it very, very
concise,” Basmadjian said, leafing through a bound 23-page document.

Political reform also helped their cause. Under reforms introduced by
Prime Minister Paul Martin, private members’ motions are now subject
to automatic votes. Moreover, the so-called two-line vote on the
motion called for cabinet solidarity but other Liberals MPs were free
to vote the way they wanted. “Without the government members this
motion would have died,” said Eleni Bakopanos, Liberal MP for
Ahuntsic riding, who supported it.

Basmadjian and a contingent of 150 people of Armenian descent watched
in the visitors’ gallery as MPs voted 153-68 in favour of the motion.

His eyes filled with tears again recently as he recalled seeing some
members of Parliament become emotional. “Seeing Armenian eyes crying
is understandable,” Basmadjian said. “But seeing the MPs crying –
that was the most touching part of all.”

The motion was brief.

In a letter sent to MPs, the Armenian National Committee of Canada
called the recognition of the Armenian genocide “an act of historical
justice” rather than one of vengeance.

But a Turkish diplomat in Ottawa contends the motives behind it
involve land claims and financial redress.

“It is not a case of genocide from our point of view. It is a
historical dispute for land … from the days of the collapse of the
Ottoman Empire,” said Fazli Corman, a counsellor at the Turkish
embassy.

The assertion of genocide “is not right because it is a travesty of
truth,” Corman added.

Turkey suggests a few hundred thousand Armenians died; however, most
non-Turkish historians contend the Turks killed up to 1.5 million
Armenians in 1915.

“We all have someone in our family tree who has been affected – who
has either been murdered by the Ottoman authorities at the time or
had a life of hardship because of that,” Serengulian said.

[email protected]

GRAPHIC: Photo: RICHARD ARLESS JR, THE GAZETTE; Robert Kouyoumdjian,
a member of the Armenian National Committee of Canada, visits the
Armenian National Monument at Marcelin-Wilson Park at the corner of
L’Acadie and Henri Bourassa Blvds., where his daughter, Celine
Kouyoumdjian, places flowers. The National Committee succeeded in
having the federal government recognize the Armenian genocide during
the First World War.

Yerevan hails Georgian leadership’s decisive policy in Ajaria

Mediamax news agency
6 May 04

YEREVAN

Official Yerevan expressed satisfaction today about that
“confrontation between the central authorities of Georgia and the
leadership of the Autonomous Republic of Ajaria settled mainly
peacefully and without bloodshed”.

As Mediamax news agency reported, the spokesman of the Armenian
Foreign Ministry, Gamlet Gasparyan announced in Yerevan today.

“Similar resolution became the main step on the way to establishing
peace and stability in Georgia, consequently in all the South
Caucasus. In this connection we welcome the consistent and decisive
policy of the Georgian authorities, thanks to which they succeeded in
overcoming this difficult barrier,” the official of the Armenian
Foreign Ministry announced.

Mansfield News Journal, OH
May 5 2004

What will it take for us to leave Iraq?

By Ron Simon
News Journal

Not long ago, USA TODAY did a piece on all the young men and women
who have been killed while serving in Iraq.

All their pictures fit on one page. Until that point, it hadn’t hit
home how few there really have been.

Not that each one doesn’t hurt like hell when that one is your
friend, your brother, your son or daughter.

And you can be sure that many, many more are coming home maimed in
one way or another.

But in all honesty, we lost that many in just one ambush in the Ia
Drang Valley.

Think back to that first awful hour on Omaha Beach. Or the bloody
black sands of Iwo Jima.

Or, God help humanity, one hot afternoon at Antietam Creek in
Maryland when the “landscape turned red.”

When I read about our difficulties in Iraq and how determined to the
death some Iraqis are to blow us out of there, I know how the British
must have felt when they occupied New York City in the 1770s.

Somebody in London decided if the Redcoats were able to occupy North
America’s major cities, that silly old revolution would die on the
vine.

So first they held Boston and found themselves trapped there. The
march to Concord was a disaster and Bunker Hill was even worse. Then,
when they found themselves staring at the mouths of cannons on
Dorchester Heights, it was time to pull out.

Next, they tried New York City and after a few brisk fights, it was
theirs. And it’s all they got. If a Redcoat thought he could go
raiding in Westchester County, Long Island or New Jersey, he was
liable to wind up dead. Trapped again.

Philadelphia wasn’t quite so deadly, but it was just another dead
end, as were Charleston and Savannah. Those damned Yankees owned the
countryside and managed to get France and Holland involved.

Time to leave.

Like the Greeks in Persia, the Romans in Germany and the Germans in
Russia, being belligerent in somebody else’s country can bear painful
results.

A lot of Vietnam veterans are going back there on veterans holidays.
They say the reception is great. Folks are friendly. It sure wasn’t
like that 35 years ago. I can’t remember ever feeling safe anywhere
when I was there.

We did have two successful occupations in Japan and Germany after
World War II and I guess it is because both countries were so
completely defeated that we could afford to be friendly and
forgiving.

We felt the same way about the South Koreans. But when you think
about it, all three countries were not too unhappy to have our
military around, considering how many enemies they had. We made a
great security blanket and spent money like water. It’s no surprise
all three countries have done so well. We primed their pumps and let
them grow behind our shield.

That’s not the case in Iraq. The Kurds like us plenty and seem to be
doing well. I hope we don’t desert them again, but they haven’t much
more historic luck than the Jews or the Armenians.

No matter how many of us get killed or injured, I don’t sense any
mood to cut and run from Iraq yet. I just wonder what it’s going to
take to get out of this one with some honor.

I hope I never see film of our last helicopters lifting off from a
building in Baghdad with people dangling from the landing skids. Once
in a lifetime is enough.

Baku Today
April 28 2004

Aliyev, Kocharyan to meet today

Baku Today 28/04/2004 12:27

Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev will meet Armenian president
Robert Kocharyan today at 13.30 Baku time in Warsaw.

The two presidents will discuss Karabakh issue. Following their close
meeting Aliyev and Kocharyan will meet with OSCE’s Minsk group
chairmen.
The chairmen are expected to inform the presidents about their stance
over the issue.

Aliyev and Kocharyan are visiting Poland for a three day economic
summit of European nations.

Aliyev arrived in Warsaw yesterday. He met with the president of
Poland Aleksander Kwasniewski.

The two presidents have talked about half hour to develop relations
between Azerbaijan and Poland.

Kwasniewski said, Aliyev’s attendance at the European summit will
have positive impact on attracting big European companies to
Azerbaijan.

Aliyev will be addressing the summit today. He will speak of economic
reforms in Azerbaijan and also Azerbaijan’s participation in large
commercial projects.

Baku Today

Aliyev meets Kocharyan

Baku Today 28/04/2004 19:46

Azerbaijani president Aliyev has met with his Armenian counterpart Robert
Kocharyan today to consider the ways of settling Karabakh conflict between
Armenia and Azerbaijan, according to ANS.

The two presidents have hold close meeting which lasted about two hours.
This is the second time Aliyev and Kocharyan have met over Karabakh issue.
Their first meeting was in December 2003 in Geneva of Switzerland.
Aliyev is now meeting with OSCE Minsk group’s chairmen.

Since 1997 United States, Russia and France have been jointly mediating
peaceful solution for Karabakh conflict in a group of three.

United States has recently appointed new chairman to the group.

Chairman of Washington based Central Asia-Caucasus Institute Frederick Starr
said, in interview to Azerbaijan’s Lider TV, new US spokesman at the Minsk
group Steven Mann is quite professional and knowledgeable person to advance
the group’s efforts for settling the conflict.

Yet Minsk group, Starr said, might have solved the problem long ago. As if
three chairmen have agreed orally to meet sometimes, he said, “to talk and
drink some wine.”

“This is cynicism,” said Starr adding “If the United States or Russia or
Europe wanted to solve this problem they could do that 10 years ago. Each
for some reason did not (solve)”.

[Congressional Record: April 27, 2004 (Extensions)]
[Page E662]
>From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr27ap04-38]

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

______

HON. PETER J. VISCLOSKY

of indiana

in the house of representatives

Tuesday, April 27, 2004

Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in solemn memorial to the
estimated 1.5 million men, women, and children who lost their lives
during the Armenian Genocide. As in the past, I am pleased to join so
many distinguished House colleagues on both sides of the aisle in
ensuring that the horrors wrought upon the Armenian people are never
repeated.
On April 24, 1915, over 200 religious, political, and intellectual
leaders of the Armenian community were brutally executed by the Turkish
government in Istanbul. Over the course of the next 8 years, this war
of ethnic genocide against the Armenian community in the Ottoman Empire
took the lives of over half the world’s Armenian population.
Sadly, there are some people who still deny the very existence of
this period which saw the institutionalized slaughter of the Armenian
people and dismantling of Armenian culture. To those who would question
these events, I point to the numerous reports contained in the U.S.
National Archives detailing the process that systematically decimated
the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire. However, old records are
too easily forgotten–and dismissed. That is why we come together every
year at this time: to remember in words what some may wish to file away
in archives. This genocide did take place, and these lives were taken.
That memory must keep us forever vigilant in our efforts to prevent
these atrocities from ever happening again.
I am proud to note that Armenian immigrants found, in the United
States, a country where their culture could take root and thrive. Most
Armenians in America are children or grandchildren of the survivors,
although there are still survivors among us. In my district in
Northwest Indiana, a vibrant Armenian-American community has developed
and strong ties to Armenia continue to flourish. My predecessor in the
House, the late Adam Benjamin, was of Armenian heritage, and his
distinguished service in the House serves as an example to the entire
Northwest Indiana community. Over the years, members of the Armenian-
American community throughout the United States have contributed
millions of dollars and countless hours of their time to various
Armenian causes. Of particular note are Mrs. Vicki Hovanessian and her
husband, Dr. Raffy Hovanessian, residents of Indiana’s First
Congressional District, who have continually worked to improve the
quality of life in Armenia, as well as in Northwest Indiana. Three
other Armenian-American families in my congressional district, Dr. Aram
and Mrs. Seta Semerdjian, Dr. Heratch and Mrs. Sonya Doumanian, and Dr.
Ara and Mrs. Rosy Yeretsian, have also contributed greatly toward
charitable works in the United States and Armenia. Their efforts,
together with hundreds of other members of the Armenian-American
community, have helped to finance several important projects in
Armenia, including the construction of new schools, a mammography
clinic, and a crucial roadway connecting Armenia to Nagorno Karabagh.
In the House, I have tried to assist the efforts of my Armenian-
American constituency by continually supporting foreign aid to Armenia.
This past year, with my support, Armenia received $84 million in U.S.
aid to assist economic and military development. In addition, on April
16, 2004, I joined several of my colleagues in signing the letter to
President Bush urging him to honor his pledge to recognize the Armenian
Genocide.
The Armenian people have a long and proud history. In the fourth
century, they became the first nation to embrace Christianity. During
World War I, the Ottoman Empire was ruled by an organization known as
the Young Turk Committee, which allied with Germany. Amid fighting in
the Ottoman Empire’s eastern Anatolian provinces, the historic
heartland of the Christian Armenians, Ottoman authorities ordered the
deportation and execution of all Armenians in the region. By the end of
1923, virtually the entire Armenian population of Anatolia and western
Armenia had either been killed or deported.
While it is important to keep the lessons of history in mind, we must
also remain committed to protecting Armenia from new and more hostile
aggressors. In the last decade, thousands of lives have been lost and
more than a million people displaced in the struggle between Armenia
and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabagh. Even now, as we rise to
commemorate the accomplishments of the Armenian people and mourn the
tragedies they have suffered, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and other countries
continue to engage in a debilitating blockade of this free nation.
Consistently, I have testified before the Foreign Operations
Appropriations Subcommittee on the important issue of bringing peace to
a troubled area of the world. I continued my support for maintaining
the level of funding for the Southern Caucasus region of the
Independent States (IS), and of Armenia in particular. In addition, on
February 26, 2004, I joined several of my colleagues in sending a
letter to President Bush urging nim to ensure parity in military
assistance between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleagues, Representatives Joe
Knollenberg and Frank Pallone, for organizing this special order to
commemorate the 89th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Their
efforts will not only help bring needed attention to this tragic period
in world history, but also serve to remind us of our duty to protect
basic human rights and freedoms around the world.

ZORYAN INSTITUTE OF CANADA, INC.
255 Duncan Mill Rd., Suite 310
Toronto, ON, Canada M3B 3H9
Tel: 416-250-9807 Fax: 416-512-1736 E-mail: [email protected]

April 24, 2004

Reflections on the Official Recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the
Canadian Parliament

April is the month for remembering genocide. The Armenian Genocide of
1915-1923, the Jewish Holocaust of 1939-1945, and the Rwandan Genocide of
1994, are all commemorated during this month. It is a time of considerable
public activity, with lectures, candle-light vigils, commemorations,
speeches, religious services, and other special events. It is also a time
for serious personal reflection, not only on what happened and why, but
what it means to the world today.

It is noteworthy that the Members of the Canadian Parliament–from PEI to
British Columbia, from the Northwest Territories to the US border, from
regions where there is not a single Armenian voter or lobbyist–chose to
recognize the Genocide in a free vote according to their individual
conscience, and in keeping with their Canadian values and human rights
principles. This does not mean that some MP’s did not vote for political
reasons.

An editorial in the April 24, 2004 issue of the Globe and Mail, Canada’s
national newspaper, on the recognition of the Genocide is another example
of Canadian human rights values. It explains that in a country in which
diversity is a fact of life, society must be based on respect for human
rights. This represents a position which is hard to attribute to lobbying
activity. It is simply a matter that “If this diverse country stresses
human rights on the domestic scene, it can hardly deny their value in the
larger world.”

There is a growing number of countries making the special effort to
recognize the Armenian Genocide. Canada is only the most recent of some two
dozen countries and international organizations that officially recognize
the Genocide.

There is no denying the hard work of numerous Armenian civic, political,
academic, religious, and human rights organizations and individuals who
work with these officials, keeping them informed and engaged on the issues.
We believe at the same time that it is critical to acknowledge the numerous
non-Armenians–Americans, Canadians, French, Germans, Jews, Swiss, Turks,
etc., politicians, scholars and human rights activists–who, for no reason
other than their principles, continue to struggle for truth, justice and
human rights. It is fitting at this time to remember the cumulative efforts
of all those for whom affirmation of the Armenian Genocide is a victory for
universal human rights.

AA1 Plus | 15:29:16 | 27-04-2004 | Politics |

OPPOSITION REPRESENTATIVES LEFT WITH NO OPTION BUT TO REJECT DIALOGUE

Dialogue between the ruling coalition and the opposition had to be held
today.

As it is already known that MPs Victor Dallakyan and Arshak Sadoyan, who
represent the opposition, intend to reject the dialogue, because the
authorities have blocked roads to Yerevan to prevent people from attending
the opposition-announced rally.

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
May 3 2004

AMBASSADOR OF AZERBAIJAN HOLDS NEWS CONFERENCE IN ANKARA
[May 03, 2004, 17:19:06]

Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Turkey Mammad Aliyev held a news conference
for the journalists of Azerbaijan and Turkey at the center of culture
of Azerbaijan in Ankara, 1 May, correspondent of AzerTAj reported.

Making statement, Ambassador Aliyev clarified the information
distributed by some media of Turkey, on participation of Azerbaijan MPs
in voting related to adoption by the Council of Europe Parliamentary
Assembly resolution on the Cyprus question. He noted that the
information was misrepresented. Ministry of foreign affairs of
Azerbaijan, members of delegation, our embassy in Turkey and permanent
representation in Strasbourg was not notified on discussion at PACE of
the Cyprus question. In voting, as expected, should take part 300
deputies. However, as a result of weak coordination work, there were
only 70 people, and 45 of them voted against.

In such situation, participation of our delegation in voting would not
have impact on the results.

Azerbaijan always supported position of the Turks of Northern Cyprus,
stressed significance of ensuring their security and recognition of
their rights. Paying attention that there were several deputies of
Turkey in the hall, the Ambassador connected this with weak
coordination work. He informed that he connected with deputy prime
minister and foreign minister of Turkey Abdullah Gul that as a result
of weak organization, the Azerbaijan delegation was not notified on the
item.

Ambassador answering questions of the journalists underlined that there
is no parallel between the Cyprus questions and the
Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorny Karabakh conflict. Emphasizing that the
strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Turkey develops quickly,
evidence to which is the fruitful visit of Azerbaijan President to
Ankara, Mammad Aliyev said that some forces are concerned with it.

The Ambassador noted that despite the statement of officials of Turkey,
in the Turkish press periodically appear the topic of opening of
borders between Turkey and Armenia, which is also for the interests of
those forces.