ASBAREZ Online [01-26-2005]

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01/26/2005
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) Armenia Reacts to PACE Resolution 2) Reference of Genocide to be Included in Turkish Textbooks 3) Armenian Caucus Co-chairs Call on Bush Administration to Renounce Accusations by State Department Official on Karabagh 4) Melkonian Trust Monitoring Group Meets with Patriarch in Support of Legal Action 5) Turkish Army Warns Iraqi Kurds, US over Kirkuk 6) European Court of Justice Demands Turkey to Pay up for Inhumane Treatment 1) Armenia Reacts to PACE Resolution Foreign Ministry emphasizes Minsk Group's role in negotiations, non-binding nature of resolution YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--Armenia's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamlet Gasparian criticized, on Wednesday, a Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) resolution that addresses the Armenian occupation of Azeri territories around Mountainous Karabagh. Adopted on Tuesday, the resolution states that "the occupation of foreign territory by a member state constitutes a grave violation of that state's obligations as a member of the Council of Europe." It also notes that the Karabagh war has led to the creation of "mono-ethnic areas which resemble the terrible concept of ethnic cleansing." Gasparian called the document flawed, saying that it "addresses consequences of the conflict without looking into its root causes." "Nonetheless, the resolution is not legally binding. It is only advisory and declarative," he said in a statement. The Foreign Ministry's statement emphasizes that the Karabagh peace process is spearheaded by the OSCE's Minsk Group and the Council of Europe. "We believe that the positive and negative sides of the resolution will not have much of an impact on negotiations." Levon Mkrtchian of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, a member of the government coalition, warned of pitfalls lying ahead. "I don't think that the document will have a direct influence on the Minsk Group process," he said. "But it could complicate the situation in a different way. It could create an illusion among Azerbaijan's leaders that they can toughen their position and exert pressure on Armenia with such methods." 2) Reference of Genocide to be Included in Turkish Textbooks ANKARA--The Republic of Turkey's Education Ministry recently announced that elementary-level history textbooks will, for the first time, include reference to the genocide committed against the Ottoman-Armenians. The textbooks, however, will include both, what Turkey refers to, the "Armenian version" of the genocide, and an "official" government sanctioned version of the events. The chairman of the Education Ministry's committee on textbooks, Moustafa Safran, explained that the inclusion of the genocide arose from the fact that Armenians have insisted that the events that occurred between 1915-1923 qualify as "genocide." In order to address the issue, Safran said, the committee decided to include both the Armenian and Turkish perspectives--a move allowing students the information necessary to form an educated opinion--according to the committee. Safran noted his committee realizes that it is impossible nowadays to shield Turkish school children from "Armenian claims," and that it is their intention to bolster the government's position on the issue by including archival Ottoman documents, which reportedly prove that the genocide never occurred. Safran's committee has also decided to exclude incendiary remarks such as "we crushed the Greeks," and be particular in its definitions of "heroes" and "traitors." Textbooks will note that numerous Kurdish tribes assisted Mustafa Kemal's efforts in establishing a "modern" Turkey. 3) Armenian Caucus Co-chairs Call on Bush Administration to Renounce Accusations by State Department Official on Karabagh WASHINGTON, DC--US Reps. Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) and Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), cochairmen of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, called on the US State Department to formally renounce remarks by a State Department official in Moscow that described the government of Mountainous Karabagh Republic as "criminal secessionists." The lawmakers made the request in a letter to Secretary of State nominee Condoleezza Rice, referring to a statement made by Assistant Secretary of State Elizabeth Jones during a January 13 digital video-conference with journalists at US Embassies in Moscow, Rome, and Bratislava. Expressing serious concern about the inaccurate characterization of Karabagh, the co-chairs said, "These unfounded and incendiary accusations undermine the very principles underlying our role as an honest broker in the Organization for Security and Cooperation's Minsk Group Nagorno-Karabakh peace process." The letter also stresses the damage of such remarks as it "unfairly denigrates the tremendous progress that the people and government of Nagorno-Karabakh have made in establishing democratic institutions, even as they have struggled to rebuild their homes, schools and farms destroyed by years of brutal Azerbaijan aggression." Jones's false charge that the government is "criminal," the lawmakers said, "only serves to further encourage irresponsible senior Azerbaijani leaders that are already calling for a military solution to the Karabakh issue." 4) Melkonian Trust Monitoring Group Meets with Patriarch in Support of Legal Action ISTANBUL--The Armenian Patriarch of Istanbul Mesrob Mutafyan, held a meeting with members of the Monitoring Group on the Melkonian Trust (MGMT) to discuss the pending suit against New York-based Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU). The January 24 meeting took place Armenian Patriarchal headquarters in Istanbul. The MGMT members thanked the Patriarch for his willingness to act on the issue in order to assure that the historic school continues to function. As reported on January 20, Archbishop Mutafyan, in his fiduciary capacity as Patriarch of Constantinople, filed a lawsuit against New York-based Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) on January 13, 2005. The suit, which mainly addresses the formal announcement made by the AGBU in March 2004 that it would be closing the Melkonian Educational Institution in Nicosia, Cyprus at the end of the 2005 school year, was filed in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles by plaintiff Mutafyan's California-based attorney Mark Macarley. In July 1921, wealthy Armenian businessman Garabed Melkonian donated a gift to then Patriarch of Constantinople Zaven Der Yeghyayan, to establish and maintain Armenian schools, as well as carry out various charitable works for the Armenian people. In 1924, the value of the gift was at least $3.5 million and per Melkonian's request, an Armenian school and orphanage named the Melkonian Educational Institute was established in Nicosia, Cyprus. In 1925, Patriarch Der Yeghyayan transferred the entire Melkonian gift, including the Melkonian Educational Institute, to the AGBU due to the latter's expressed ability to better manage the trust's assets and execute the donor's intentions. Archbishop Mutafyan informed the members of the MGMT that he first became aware of the existence and contents of the 1926 Deed of Amendment to the Melkonian Trust on December 28, 2004, through the Melkonian Educational Institute Alumni in Los Angeles, and emphasized that he is now cognizant of the multiple obligations the AGBU accepted from his predecessor, Patriarch Der Yeghyayan, in 1926. The suit, Arch. Mesrob Mutafyan vs. Armenian General Benevolent Union, petitions to compel AGBU to perform the Trustee's duties and redress a breach of trust by payment of money or otherwise. 5) Turkish Army Warns Iraqi Kurds, US over Kirkuk ANKARA (AFP)--Ethnic strife in Kirkuk, sparked by Kurdish attempts to take control of the oil-rich city in northern Iraq, would create "serious" security concerns for Turkey, the Turkish army warned on Wednesday. It might also open a rift with the United States, it said. The number two in line, in the influential Turkish military, renewed Ankara's charges that more Kurds than those expelled from Kirkuk under Saddam Hussein's regime have now settled in the city and registered for Sunday's elections in Iraq. "We have repeatedly said that such a situation may make the election results in Kirkuk disputable and make it almost impossible to find a fair and lasting solution for Kirkuk," General Ilker Basbug told a news conference. "Moreover, we are concerned that such developments will pose a threat to Iraq's territorial and political unity and create a great security problem in the region," he said. "Such a development will also create a serious security problem for Turkey." Ankara is vehemently opposed to Kurdish control of Kirkuk, which many Kurds want to incorporate into their enclave in northern Iraq and even see as the capital of a future independent Kurdish state, a nightmare scenario for Iraq's neighbors. Earlier this month the Kurds reached a deal with the Iraqi government that cleared the way for an estimated 100,000 Kurds said to have been expelled from Kirkuk in the past, to vote for the new local government in the elections. The deal effectively tipped the balance of power to the Kurds, fanning ethnic tensions in the city, home to a large number of Turkmen, a community of Turkish descent backed by Ankara. Basbug warned that post-election disputes in Kirkuk "may lead to confrontations...and may pull the trigger for a civil war in Iraq." Asked about the United States's role in preventing unrest in the region, the general conceded that "the circumstances in Iraq are very difficult," but cautioned that ethnic tensions in Kirkuk might deal a blow to Turkey's ties with its long-standing ally. "If the people of Kirkuk endorse the election results, we will conclude that no major problem exists," he said. "But if the opposite happens, then we will see that we have differences" with the US. 6) European Court of Justice Demands Turkey to Pay up for Inhumane Treatment The European Court of Justice demanded on January 25 that Turkey pay 10,000 euros to a man who was subjected to harm and electric shock when taken into custody by Turkish police. On the night of April 1, 1996, 29-year-old Hussein Syunal was taken to jail and endured inhumane treatment, including electric shock. The same night, Syunal was taken to the hospital, where he was reported to have had numerous injuries to his head, body, including his tongue. It later became apparent that during questioning, the police had tied electric lines to his tongue. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2005 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.