Eight days in, man fasting for Armenian Genocide recognition remains

The Leader
April 11 2015

Eight days in, man fasting for Armenian Genocide recognition remains positive

Much more than ten pounds lighter but nevertheless in good spirits,
Agasi Vartanyan gave a thumbs up Friday from his glass perch in
Burbank exactly where he has lived on only water for the final eight
days.

Much more than ten pounds lighter but nevertheless in good spirits,
Agasi Vartanyan gave a thumbs up Friday from his glass perch in
Burbank exactly where he has lived on only water for the final eight
days.

&#x201cI feel seriously good. I&#x2019m comfortable,&#x201d he
mentioned via a translator. &#x201cYou can’t harm your physique in
this way if you&#x2019re performing it for a trigger.&#x201d

Vartanyan&#x2019s planned public fast of 55 days is meant to cast
international focus on what he calls an injustice to the 1.five
million Armenians who had been killed beneath the command of the
Ottoman Turks starting a century ago this year.

>From 1915 to 1923, Armenians were forcibly deported from their homes
and killed as part of a systemic ethnic cleansing that also affected
Assyrians and Pontic Greeks.

Historians, scholars and human rights activists contact it the very
first genocide of the 20th century. But the Turkish government
maintains the deaths have been a result of betrayal and civil unrest
in what was then a collapsing Ottoman Empire.

Currently the issue remains politicized, with both the United States
and Turkish governments refusing to get in touch with it genocide.
Armenian-American activists have stated the U.S. government
won&#x2019t officially recognize the killings as genocide mainly
because it would hurt relations with Turkey, a NATO ally. Locally,
Rep. Adam Schiff has taken up the bring about, hoping to push the
Obama administration to officially acknowledge it as a genocide.

Vartanyan, a Glendale resident, has stayed inside the enclosure
constructed on a high platform outside St. Leon Armenian Cathedral in
Burbank since April 3. Most of the front of the enclosure, which
measures practically 12 feet by 12 feet, is a glass wall, allowing the
public to see him day and night, although there is some privacy.
He&#x2019s been offered 55 gallons of water, a couple of clothing, a
lounge chair and a television.

His story has not only attracted Armenians, but several other people
who want to discover about genocides, mentioned Sokrates Karimian, the
chief executive officer of the nonprofit Crimes Against Humanity
&#x2014 Never Once again (CAHNA), which formed to raise worldwide
awareness on genocides previous and present. The organization is
supporting Vartanyan&#x2019s rapidly.

&#x201cHis rapidly has not only mobilized Armenians, but persons from
all walks of life calling for justice,&#x201d Karimian mentioned.
&#x201cWe&#x2019re quite happy that we can educate individuals by
means of his optimistic act.&#x201d

Vartanyan once fasted for 50 days in 2006 although living in Russia.
He mentioned he chose to quickly for 55 days to beat his personal
record and mainly because he&#x2019s 55 years old. His wellness is
getting monitored consistently by a doctor and nurse. He&#x2019s gone
from 224 pounds to 213 pounds.

&#x201cPeople are always stopping by and they&#x2019re so good sharing
encouraging words. That raises my spirits,&#x201d he mentioned Friday
by way of a translator. &#x201cPeople have been very kind and they
guarantee to pray for me.&#x201d

He said his determination to raise awareness about the Armenian
Genocide is what keeps him motivated.

&#x201cI&#x2019m doing this so that individuals who don&#x2019t know
about the Armenian Genocide understand about this attempt to do away
with a people today,&#x201d he said. &#x201cI want Turkey and this
nation to acknowledge the genocide. That would make me satisfied if I
played even a compact part in generating that come about.&#x201d

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress