Pres. Kocharian Says Today’s Turkey Is Responsible for the Genocide

By Harut Sassounian

Publisher, The California Courier

May 11, 2006

In the vain hope of splitting the Diaspora from Armenia, Turkish officials have been making self-delusional statements. They have repeatedly claimed that Diaspora Armenians are the ones pushing for demands from Turkey, while the people of Armenia supposedly just want to live in peace with their Turkish neighbors.

On April 24 of this year, high-ranking Armenian officials went out of their way to expose these Turkish distortions by taking a very tough stand vis-à-vis Turkey. In an official statement issued on the occasion of the 91st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Pres. Kocharian went far beyond anything he had said before on Turkish responsibility for the Armenian Genocide. For the first time, he blamed not only the Ottoman Empire for the Genocide, but also today’s Turkish Republic.

Pres. Kocharian stated: "Today we commemorate the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide. Ottoman Turkey and its legal successor bear full responsibility for this crime. In the years succeeding the Armenian Genocide, the survivors have borne the grave consequences of the committed crime.

The pain is all the more intense, as we are forced to struggle for recognition as well as condemnation of that black page of history. The Republic of Armenia, as the articulator of the national interests of Armenians living in the homeland as well as those scattered throughout the world, will continue that struggle. We are grateful to all the countries, organizations and individuals who are supporting us."

The Prime Minister of Armenia, Antranik Margarian, in his April 24 statement, found it salutary that

"the number of countries recognizing and condemning the Armenian Genocide is increasing with each passing year.… The efforts of today’s Turkey aiming to deny the Genocide, distort the evidence, cover up the facts, and silence the handful of Turkish intellectuals who are exposing and condemning the shameful pages of its history, are not only unhelpful in promoting a stable peace and good neighborly relations in the region, but in an atmosphere of impunity, make the perpetration of new crimes possible."

The Deputy Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Tigran Torosian, said:

"Recognition of the Genocide will dignify Turkey and the Turkish people.
They can also not recognize it, but that won’t change anything in the world."

The Deputy Minister of Defense of Armenia, Artur Aghabekian, stated:

"Turkey must understand that sooner or later the whole world, each and every state, will recognize the Armenian Genocide…. Turkey will have to recognize the Genocide. If it won’t do it today, it will do it tomorrow. How could it evade historical justice?"

In an interview conducted by Paul Chaderjian and aired on April 24 on Armenia TV, Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said:

"Today, the children of the survivors and the Government of Armenia, both, have been transformed from victims to activists working with the international community to right a historical wrong, to acknowledge a crime against humanity and to advocate prevention of such crimes in the future…. Today, in its search for European Union membership, Turkey is having to deal with history and memory and identity. And of course, the existence of an Armenian state means that we can raise these issues at an official government level."

When asked if it would not be wiser to let the Diaspora pursue the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, the Foreign Minister emphatically responded:

"The Genocide affected every single Armenian. The responsibility to right the memory of that wrong rests with all of us. The Armenian Government has the moral responsibility to speak about the Genocide of the Armenians, and to call for Genocide recognition. This responsibility is one we fully acknowledge. In fact, the active involvement of the Armenian Government and its representatives has also played a role in the progress of the recognition process. The podiums and forums that are available to the representatives of a state are many and we use them to make our case to the international community. At the same time, as a responsible member of that community, we know that we cannot make Genocide recognition a pre-condition to our relationship with the Republic of Turkey. The irony is that we, the survivors and victims of Genocide, don’t make normal relations conditional on its recognition, yet the Turkish side often suggests that Armenia should put Genocide recognition aside if it wants normal relations with Turkey. Clearly, we cannot."

Foreign Minister Oskanian then provided the possible reasons for Turkey’s refusal to face the Genocide issue: "There is perhaps a fear that entering this realm, embarking on a relationship with Armenians will place them in a morally uncomfortable and undesirable situation, and that they will be held responsible for those events. I cannot repeat this often enough: Armenians are able to distinguish between the perpetrators and today’s Turkey. But Turks themselves must be willing to do what is morally right and reject and denounce the crimes of the Ottoman Empire. Otherwise, today’s denial means implicit endorsement or acceptance of those past crimes."

Continuing to express his serious concerns over the denial of the Armenian Genocide by Turkey, Minister Oskanian said:

"Justifying, even revering the genocidal state policy of one regime has become the state policy of another regime. Denial is state policy, just as genocide is state policy. It is today's Turkish State that is wasting money and credibility on denying, distorting, dismissing serious crimes against humanity committed during the Ottoman years. Not only are they denying history, they are also legislating denial by making it difficult, if not impossible, to actually dig into this painful issue and come face to face with difficult historic and political realities. It is safe to say that Turkish society -- writers, historians, journalists -- are in fact seeking and trying to reach their own conclusions about what really happened. It is the state that insists on rejecting those questions even. The people of Turkey are searching for answers. The memoir of US Ambassador Henry Morgenthau, the British Blue Book, the works of Vahakn Dadrian and Peter Balakian can be found in Turkish, in Turkey. We welcome this, because before there can be dialogue with Armenians, there must be internal questioning and dialogue in Turkey."

The Armenian Foreign Minister concluded with an ominous warning: "The longer it takes for Turks to repudiate those acts, the more today's Turks and yesterday's Ottomans will become synonymous in people's minds."

After such strong statements by the President, Prime Minister, Deputy Parliament Speaker, Foreign Minister, and Deputy Defense Minister of Armenia, it would be preposterous for any Turkish official to claim that the Armenian state has no interest in pursuing the Genocide issue. All Armenians, be they in Armenia or the Diaspora, are united in their resolve to demand that the Turkish Republic acknowledge the Armenian Genocide and make appropriate amends.

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Canadian PM's Genocide Recognition Statement Sparks Row With Turkey

OTTAWA -- Turkey has recalled its ambassador to Canada as the country plots an official response to Prime Minister Stephen Harper's recent acknowledgement of the 1915 Armenian genocide -- one of the most disputed and politically fraught events of the 20th century.

Harper's three-paragraph statement April 19 to mark the "sombre anniversary" -- the first time that Canada has made such a statement -- barely caught the attention of most Canadians, but it ignited a furor in Ankara that appears set to boil over.

An official at the Turkish Embassy in Ottawa told CanWest News Service that Aydemir Erman has not been formally withdrawn from Canada over the prime minister's comments, but he has been "called back" to Turkey to discuss with government officials what steps will be taken to express displeasure with the remarks.

Those options include the formal withdrawal of Turkey's top diplomat in Canada, a threat Turkey has made with Canada and other countries in the past.

"The ambassador is now travelling to Turkey because our authorities have asked him to join them for consultations and, indeed, it is related to what's been happening here in the last week or so here in Canada with the prime minister's declaration," said Yoney Tezel, a counsellor with the embassy.

Ottawa's official position that 1.5 million Armenians were killed in a "genocide" adds Canada to a group of about 25 other countries, including France, Russia, Poland and Argentina.

"For us, this is a serious matter," Tezel said. "The Armenian claims are a direct attack on our identity, on Turkey's history. We feel it's unfair. That's why when these claims find some recognition we always consider that something negative."

Harper's statement, delivered on the 91st anniversary of the bloodbath, noted that both the Senate and the House of Commons have adopted motions acknowledging that a genocide took place.

"My party and I supported those resolutions and continue to recognize them today," he said.
On April 25, Turkey's Foreign Ministry issued a statement accusing Harper of exhibiting a "gravely prejudiced attitude."

"Such statements ... are not only counter-productive to the atmosphere of dialogue we wish to build between Turkey and Armenia, but also adversely affect the relations between Turkey and Canada," the Turkish government said.

A Turkish newspaper, Hurriyet, reported after Harper's statement that Canadian companies would be barred from bidding on contracts related to the construction of a major nuclear power plan.

Aris Babikian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of Canada, said Turkey has reacted similarly in the past.

"In 2002, when the Senate passed a resolution, they also threatened and blackmailed Canada that they are going to cut the relationship and boycott Canadian companies and nothing happened," he said. "They did the same thing in 2004 when the House of Commons passed a resolution. Now they are using the same tactics."

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Turkish Consul Exposes True Colors By Insulting Armenians on April 24

Turkish Consul Exposes True Colors
By Insulting Armenians on April 24


By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
May 4, 2006

As a growing number of parliaments, international organizations, members of the media, Turkish scholars and prominent world figures have come to acknowledge the facts of the Armenian Genocide, the Turkish government has been frantically looking for ways to counter the rapid progress of the Armenian Cause.

The Turkish government has alternately offered economic inducements and issued ultimatums to the fledgling Armenian Republic, in order to compel it to give up its pursuit of the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Neither tactic has borne any fruit. Of course, the real aim of the Turkish leaders is to drive a wedge between the Republic of Armenia and the Diaspora on this issue.

In recent years, the Turkish government has spent millions of dollars to hire the best lobbyists that money could buy and put on Ankara’s payroll scores of Turkish and foreign hired pens who are expressly tasked to disseminate anti-Armenian propaganda worldwide. The infamous Turkish Armenian Reconciliation Commission (TARC) was another diversionary tactic. Funded by Washington with the tacit support of Ankara and the participation of a handful of misguided Armenians, TARC was quickly abolished when it was met with almost unanimous resistance both in Armenia and the Diaspora. This ill-fated stratagem, under the guise of fostering dialogue, was in reality intended to stall the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

The New Anatolian newspaper published an article last month disclosing that Ankara is seriously concerned with "the rapid rise" of the number of countries recognizing the Armenian Genocide. It quoted a Turkish official as saying that Ankara has been looking for ways of stopping this "very negative [trend] from the Turkish point of view."

The New Anatolian reported that Turkey is alarmed by the fact that the Armenian Diaspora is moving beyond securing the recognition of the Genocide to having its denial punished by law. Such an initiative is being introduced in the French Parliament later this month. Turkish officials are also very concerned about the incorporation of the Armenian Genocide in the school curricula of various countries.

The New Anatolian also disclosed that a high-ranking official from the Turkish Foreign Ministry met with unnamed representatives of the Armenian-American Diaspora on the eve of April 24. However, a Turkish official was quoted as saying: "Turkey did not get any concrete results from its contacts with the Diaspora." The Zaman newspaper reported that the Turks met with "moderate" Armenians.

The reason for this failure could be that Turkish officials are simply seeking to exploit their Armenian interlocutors rather than trying to resolve outstanding Armenian-Turkish issues. Ankara is probably pursuing three objectives with such meetings:

1) to remove one of the roadblocks in the way of its application for membership in the European Union;

2) to abort further consideration of U.S. congressional genocide resolutions by creating the false impression that Turkey is already reconciling with Armenians; and

3) to drive a wedge not only between Armenia and the Diaspora, but more importantly, to split the Diaspora itself.

On a personal note, because of the above-mentioned concerns, this writer has turned down all invitations for meetings with top Turkish leaders. Such meetings could be meaningful only when the Turkish government is seeking honest dialogue with Armenians.

The Turkish Consul General in Los Angeles, Engin Ansay, has been tasked with the launching of these deceptive initiatives in Southern California. He has been wooing a few members of the local Armenian community by inviting them to private luncheons and briefings at the Turkish Consulate. Regrettably, this handful of misguided Armenians have fallen into his trap of false rapprochement. One would hope that these individuals would see through this Turkish ploy and extricate themselves from it forthright.

Last month, Consul General Ansay showed his true colors when he lashed back harshly and undiplomatically at the Armenian community on the eve of April 24. This is an unbecoming behavior for a Turkish official who has the rank of an Ambassador and has served in many important diplomatic posts around the world. The Turkish Consul General's offensive message was in response to a letter from Steven Dadaian, who had written to the consulates of various countries in Los Angeles, on behalf of the 91st Anniversary Commemorative Committee, inviting them to attend the annual commemoration of the Armenian Genocide in Montebello, California.

Dadaian received the following rude reply from Consul General Ansay, who sarcastically said that he would like to attend the Armenian Genocide commemoration in order to

"address the gathering with regard to the first genocide of the 20th Century initiated and committed against millions of Muslims and Turks by Armenian forces armed and trained by Czarist Russia during the First World War."

Hopefully, the Turkish Consul General’s insulting reply would open the eyes of the gullible Armenians who were mistakenly led to believe that they were helping “reconcile” Armenians and Turks by cultivating a personal relationship with the official representative of the Turkish denialist regime.

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CANADIAN PM ISSUED A STATEMENT ON THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

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FOX-TV Airs Armenian Genocide Program

FOX-TV Airs Armenian Genocide Program

By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
April 27, 2006

In recent days, thousands of articles were published on the Armenian Genocide in newspapers around the world. In addition, in dozens of countries, TV and radio stations provided extensive coverage of the commemorative events for the 91st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

This writer brought his share by delivering public remarks and participating in several Armenian and non-Armenian TV programs. Last year, the Los Angeles affiliate of FOX-TV (KTTV, Channel 11) interviewed him on the eve of the 90th anniversary, while airing live satellite pictures of the procession of hundreds of thousands of Armenians at the Genocide Memorial Monument in Yerevan.

This year, FOX-TV invited this writer again to their studios on April 23rd, while airing live satellite footage of the procession at the Genocide Monument in Armenia. An hour later that night, he was interviewed by UPN (KCOP-TV, Channel 13). The transcript of that second interview will be provided at a later date. Here is the transcript of the FOX-TV interview:

FOX-TV anchor 1: It’s Monday morning in Armenia where an entire nation is marking the 91st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

FOX-TV anchor 2: The Los Angeles area is home to 350,000 people of Armenian descent. The Genocide, long denied by the Turkey, is a very emotional issue for Armenians here and around the world.

Anchor 1: And now you are looking at a live shot of Yerevan, Armenia’s capital, where ceremonies are underway commemorating the start of the Genocide on April 24th, 1915. It’s estimated over one million Armenians were killed between 1915 and 1923.

Anchor 2: Joining us now in studio is Harut Sassounian of the United Armenian Fund. It’s nice to have you back. Thanks for coming in. And yet, I feel that when we begin to ask you questions in 2006, the questions don’t differ a whole lot from in 2005. Does that make you feel sad, to an extent that the progress has not been as quick as you would like it to be?

Sassounian: It’s frustrating because the facts of history are clear, but for political reasons, people play games, and that is what’s frustrating to us -- because they know the truth, and yet, they want to cover up the truth for political considerations.

Anchor 1: Let’s go back a step and be more precise here. You would like the United States government to recognize that there was an Armenian Genocide, in the first place, and the Turkish government as well?

Sassounian: The United States government in the past has had no problem recognizing it, but in recent years, because of political considerations in the region, they have started playing word games. They don’t want to come out and flat out to say it. There is a resolution in both the House and the Senate which the administration is blocking from coming to a vote. If it would come to a vote, it would pass with an overwhelming majority.

Anchor 2: I would also like you to speak to the live pictures that we are seeing in Yerevan.

Sassounian: Every year on April 24, it’s already April 24 -- Armenia is 12 hours ahead of Los Angeles -- so already tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of Armenians are starting the solemn procession from early morning hours till late at night. They pay their respects and they place flowers. The government leaders are there as well as the ambassadors of various countries.

Anchor 2: Speaking of ambassadors, you have been writing a lot of editorial pieces, a lot of articles lately about the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, talking about the U.S. government calling him back to the United States after he said what?

Sassounian: Amb. Evans was in Los Angeles last year, in February 2005. He met a large number of Armenian groups and in one of his meetings, he made a statement acknowledging the Armenian Genocide, calling it "the first genocide of the 20th Century." A few days later, when he got back, they [the State Dept.] slapped his hands and told him, "that’s a no-no! You’re not supposed to say that. Issue a clarification, saying that that was your personal opinion as opposed to the policy of the U.S. government." He issued that [clarification]. Then they made him retract a part of his clarification. They did not like the way he had clarified it. They made him make a second clarification. Then the American Foreign Service Association gave him a "Constructive Dissent" award. They gave him an award for dissenting from policy. Right before getting the award, the State Dept. forced the Association to rescind the award. So they took the award away, and now they are firing him!

Anchor 1: Does this say more about politics of the word genocide?

Sassounian: The facts are clear. There is no dispute about the facts. Even the founder of the modern Turkish Republic, Kemal Ataturk, recognized the Genocide in a 1926 interview. Turkish tribunals tried and sentenced to death the masterminds of the Genocide. The U.S. government... Pres. Reagan recognized it in a Presidential Proclamation in 1981. The U.S. Congress -- the House of Representatives, twice in 1975 and 1984, passed resolutions recognizing it. There are millions of documents in the U.S. national archives testifying to that fact. The U.S. Ambassador back then in 1915….

Anchor 1: What the Turkish government says is that there were casualties on both sides. That’s why they are reluctant….

Sassounian: Even though they know better…. The good news this year, as opposed to last year, more and more Turkish scholars are coming forward saying, "look, we started this, it is genocide, and it is time for Turkey to face the facts of history." So that’s the new development.

Anchor 2: Which is what the U.S. State Dept. has said it is encouraging. That’s its position. It says that we believe we want other countries, we encourage other countries to examine themselves, examine their own issues. Why is that not good enough for you?

Sassounian: It’s not good enough because the U.S. government, first of all, before the United States starts giving a lecture about democracy to foreign countries, it has to practice what it preaches itself, by recognizing a fact of history that happened 91 years ago, And then, only then, when you are on a solid ground, you can give a lecture about bringing democracy to Iraq, Russia or China. Then, that would make it more credible, if we practice what we preach ourselves.

Anchor 2: Is there concern, I am looking here at, from the United Nations, there are adopted resolutions on what genocide is and on what the ramifications are when signatory countries dispute genocide, as they are right now? Is it possible that this could end up in the International Court of Justice should the United States make a wrong step? Is that actually what you are concerned about?

Sassounian: We would not take the U.S. to court. But there is a lot of conversation in the Armenian community worldwide, consulting with international legal experts on possibly taking Turkey to the international court.

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