Author: Babajanian Karo

RADIO
Europe 1 : Franck Ferrand nous parle du génocide des Arméniens

Franck Ferrand nous parle aujourd’hui du génocide des Arméniens, à
l’approche du centenaire des massacres. Franck Ferrand reçoit Gérard
Chaliand, géopoliticien, spécialiste des conflits irréguliers. #ACDH

pour écouter l’intégrale

samedi 4 avril 2015,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

1915-2015 : COMMEMORONS EN TURQUIE LE GENOCIDE ARMENIEN !

Publié le : 02-04-2015

Info Collectif VAN – – Le Collectif VAN publie
ici l’appel lancé le 1er avril 2015 sur le site de La Libre Belgique.

Légende : Commémoration du génocide arménien a Istanbul, 2014.

La Libre Belgique

Publié le mercredi 01 avril 2015

1915-2015: commémorons en Turquie le génocide arménien

Une opinion de Benjamin Abtan (président du Mouvement antiraciste
européen – EGAM) , Alexis Govciyan & Nicolas Tavitian (président et
directeur de l’Union générale arménienne de bienfaisance – UGAB –
Europe) et Levent Sensever (porte-parole de Durde ! Turquie).

Se souvenir des disparus est un acte d’humanité et de réparation
symbolique qui s’impose a tous. Le faire en Turquie, c’est y accroître
la liberté d’expression.

1915-2015. Cela fait cent ans qu’a débuté le génocide des Arméniens
dans l’Empire ottoman. Un massacre au cours duquel un million et
demi d’Arméniens ont été assassinés. Cela fait cent ans, cent
ans de trop, que le négationnisme de ce crime se situe au cÃ…”ur de
la politique et de la diplomatie de l’Etat turc, qui a été fondé
notamment sur la spoliation des Arméniens et la destruction de
leur culture. Cela fait cent ans que le négationnisme continue de
faire des victimes, nourrit le nationalisme, alimente des conflits
et empêche le déploiement de la liberté d’expression et de la
démocratie en Turquie.

Cela fait quelques années que des voix, de plus en plus nombreuses
et soutenues par la société civile européenne, s’élèvent au sein
de la société civile en Turquie pour reconnaître la réalité du
génocide et commémorer en Turquie sa perpétration. C’est dans ce
cadre que se tiennent, depuis 2010, les commémorations en Turquie.

Cette année, l’Etat turc a cyniquement planifié les commémorations
de la bataille de Gallipoli pour le 24 avril, dans une nouvelle
tentative d’éclipser le génocide arménien. De plus, les autorités
turques sont engagées dans une offensive de charme afin d’éviter
un engagement international pour les commémorations du génocide
arménien. Nous, Européens, Arméniens, Turcs et Kurdes, qui avons
initié, organisé, soutenu ou participé a ces commémorations,
appelons tous les individus épris de vérité a commémorer, ensemble
et pacifiquement, a Istanbul le 24 avril prochain le génocide
perpétré contre les Arméniens.

En effet, la commémoration de ce génocide n’est pas l’affaire
uniquement des Turcs et des Arméniens mais de l’humanité entière, et
c’est notamment au sein de la société turque que se situe aujourd’hui
la ligne de front du combat contre le négationnisme. Notre démarche
partagée est universaliste. C’est une démarche de solidarité,
de justice et de promotion de la démocratie, donc d’avenir. C’est
une démarche de solidarité entre tous ceux qui se battent pour la
vérité historique.

La ligne de clivage n’est pas entre les Turcs et les Arméniens, mais
entre ceux qui combattent le négationnisme et ceux qui le promeuvent,
quelles que soient leurs origines et leurs nationalités. C’est
une démarche de justice. Le génocide est l’acte politique le plus
violent auquel le racisme puisse aboutir et le négationnisme en est
le prolongement.

Lutter contre le négationnisme, c’est ainsi lutter contre le racisme,
donc pour une société plus égalitaire et plus juste. C’est une
démarche de promotion de la démocratie. Se souvenir des disparus
est un acte d’humanité et de réparation symbolique qui s’impose
a tous. Le faire en Turquie, c’est y accroître la liberté
d’expression, c’est remettre en cause les fondements mêmes du
caractère non-démocratique du pouvoir turc. Ainsi, commémorer
en Turquie le génocide arménien permet a tous, en particulier aux
jeunes générations, rassemblés autour des valeurs partagées de
la démocratie, de se confronter a la vérité historique, donc de
pouvoir se projeter ensemble vers l’avenir.

Nous appelons tous ceux qui partagent ces valeurs et cette vision
a nous rejoindre et a commémorer, le 24 avril prochain a Istanbul,
le centième anniversaire du génocide arménien.

L’appel peut être signé en ligne en guise de soutien a :

Les signataires sont soutenus par :

Charles Aznavour, Chanteur (France), Bernard Kouchner, Ancien Ministre
des Affaires Etrangères (France), Ozutrk Turkdogan, Président
de l’Association pour les droits de l’homme – IHD (Turquie),
Artak Kirakosyan, Président du bureau de Civil Society Institute
(Arménie), Dominique Sopo, Président de SOS Racisme (France),
Edward Mier-Jedrzejowicz, Président de la fondation arménienne MKZ
Tyskiewiczow Krolikiewicz (Pologne), Bernard Henri Lévy, Ecrivain,
philosophe (France), Ara Toranian, Rédacteur en chef des “Nouvelles
d’Arménie” (France), Fethiye Cetin, Avocate, écrivaine (Turquie),
Elina Chilinguirian, Journaliste (Belgique), Daniel Cohn Bendit,
Ancien député européen (Allemagne/France), Cengiz Aktar, Professeur
(Turquie), Sonia Avakian-Bedrossian, Présidente de l’UGAB Sofia
(Bulgarie), Adam Michnik, Rédacteur en chef de Gazeta wyborcza,
ancien dirigeant de Solidarnosc (Pologne), Amos Gitaï, Cinéaste
(IsraÔl), Ahmet Insel, Professeur (Turquie), Patrick Donabedian,
Historien (France), Dario Fo, Prix Nobel de Littérature (Italie),
Aydın Engin, Journaliste (Turquie), Raffi Kantian, Président de
l’Association arméno-allemande (Allemagne), Jovan Divjak, Ancien
général défenseur de Sarajevo assiégée, Directeur exécutif
de l’association “Education builds Bosnia and Herzegovina”
(Bosnie-Herzégovine), Murat Celikkan, Journaliste (Turquie),
Valentina Poghossian, Membre du bureau d’UGAB Europe (Royaume Uni),
André Glucksmann, Philosophe, écrivain (France), Umit Kivanc,
Journaliste, écrivain (Turquie), Elena Gabrielian, Journaliste
(France), Richard Prasquier, Vice-président de la Fondation pour la
Mémoire de la Shoah (France), Ferhat Kentel, Professeur (Turquie),
Hrant Kostanyan, Chercheur associé au Centre pour European policy
studies (Belgique), Karim Lahidji, Yusuf Alatas et Antoine Bernard,
Président, vice-président et directeur général de la Fédération
Internationale des Droits de l’Homme – FIDH (France), Korhan Gumus,
Architecte (Turquie), Eduardo Lorenzo Ochoa, Secrétaire général, EU
Friends of Armenia (Belgique), Gilbert Dalgalian, Linguiste (France),
Angela Scalzo, Secrétaire générale de SOS Razzismo (Italie), Cafer
Solgun, Ecrivain et journaliste (Turquie), Vartkess Knadjian, Ancien
président de l’Association internationale des bijoutiers arméniens
(Suisse), Mario Mazic, Directeur exécutif de Youth Initiative for
Human Rights (Croatie), Sanar Yurdatapan, Musicien, Initiative pour
la liberté d’expression (Turquie), Ahmed Moawia, Président du Forum
grec des migrants (Grèce), Ferda Keskin, Professeure (Turquie), Harout
Palanjian, Président de UGAB Hollande (Pays Bas), Oana Mihalache,
Directrice du département Droits de l’homme a Romani Criss (Roumanie),
Sinan Ozbek, Professeure (Turquie), Mato Hakhverdian, Président de
la fédération des organisations arméniennes de Hollande (Pays Bas),
Anetta Kahane, Présidente de la fondation Antonio Amadeu (Allemagne),
Nurcan Kaya, Avocat (Turquie), Seta Papazian, Présidente du Collectif
VAN – Vigilance Arménienne contre le Négationnisme (France), Inge
Drost, Comité sur le 24 avril de la fédération des organisations
arméniennes de Hollande et secrétaire de l’association culturelle
arménienne Abovian (Pays Bas), Jane Braden-Golay, Présidente
de l’EUJS (Suisse), Zakariya Mildanoglu, Architecte et écrivain
(Turquie), Oncho Cherchian, Président de l’UGAB Jeunes Professionnels
(Bulgarie).

Source/Lien : La Libre Belgique

LE 24 AVRIL 2015 : LA SUISSE SERA REPRESENTEE AU NIVEAU D’AMBASSADEUR

Publie le : 03-04-2015

Info Collectif VAN – – Le Collectif VAN vous
invite a lire ce communique de presse publie sur le site du Conseil
federal de la Suisse le 1er avril 2015.

Conseil federal suisse

Berne, 01.04.2015

La Suisse sera representee au >

L’ambassadeur de Suisse en Armenie representera la Suisse au > a Erevan le 24 avril. Le
Conseil federal s’en est ainsi tenu a sa pratique traditionnelle qui
consiste a participer avec retenue aux commemorations d’evenements
historiques internationaux.

Le Conseil federal a exprime a plusieurs reprises sa condamnation
des evenements tragiques de 1915 ayant conduit a la mort d’un très
grand nombre d’Armeniens (entre plusieurs centaines de milliers et
1,5 million de personnes, selon les sources).

La Suisse continuera par ailleurs a s’engager pour une normalisation
des relations entre la Turquie et l’Armenie. Ainsi, les Protocoles de
Zurich signes entre les deux pays en 2009 envisagent, entre autres,
la creation d’une commission mixte d’historiens independants chargee
de faire la lecture de ces evenements tragiques.

Source/Lien : Conseil federal suisse

NKR FOREIGN MINISTRY REPRESENTATIVE EXPLAINS PROCEDURES OF TOURISTS’ AND FOREIGN JOURNALISTS’ ENTRY TO NKR

16:10 03/04/2015 >> SOCIETY

We present head of the Information and Public Relations Department
of NKR Ministry of Foreign Affairs Armen Sargsyan’s Interview to
Panorama.am.

– We often hear about the foreigners’ increasing interest for Nagorno
Karabakh Republic and the growing number of the tourists visiting NKR.

Are there any data for 2015?

– The data for the first three months of the year already surpass the
last years’ indicators. 906 foreign citizens from 38 various countries
visited the Nagorno Karabakh Republic during January-March of the
current year. In comparison with the previous years, it surpasses
the same period of 2014 with 34 people; January-March, 2013 – with
92 people; and indicators of 2012 – with 360 people. Therefore, the
number of tourists who have visited the NKR in the first three months
of this year is by 40% more than that of the same period of 2012.

The geography of tourists visiting Azerbaijan is interesting, too. In
2012, tourists from 86 various countries visited the NKR, in 2013 –
77 countries and in 2014 – 78 countries.

– Are the Armenian citizens included?

– No. This statistics refers to foreign tourists only. The Armenian
citizens are not included, and they are not counted due to the lack
of passport control operations.”

– Reportages about the Artsakh people’s life and routine in the
blockade of Azerbaijan can frequently be found in the international
media. Do the foreign journalists frequently visit NKR?

– For the first three months of 2015 41 foreign journalists were
accredited in the NKR MFA Information and Public Relations Department,
while the same period of the last year was marked by only four foreign
journalists’ accreditation. This indicates the growing interest for
the region.

– The Azerbaijani side often makes obstacles for the journalists’
work, who objectively cover Karabakh conflict, and declares that
foreign citizens, including journalists, must apply to the Foreign
Ministry of Azerbaijan to get a permission to visit NKR and carry out
their professional duties there. How would you comment on the claim?

– Only the visas issued by the NKR authorities have legal force on
the territory of the NKR. The NKR entrance visas are issued to foreign
citizens only at the NKR Permanent Representation in the Republic of
Armenia or at the Consular Service of the NKR Foreign Ministry. All
the other documents, issued by other countries, have no legal force
on the NKR territory and are not considered.

The same applies for the journalists’ accreditation. The permission to
carry out journalistic work on the territory of the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic is issued by the NKR MFA Information and Public Relations
Department. Accreditation, granted in other countries, including
Azerbaijan and even Armenia, is not valid on the territory of NKR,
and cannot serve as a guarantee for getting a permission to carry
out professional activities in NKR.

Therefore, the only legal way to be and/or carry out professional
work on NKR territory is getting visas and accreditation cards at
NKR Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

– Then would you describe, please, the procedure of accreditation
of journalists?

– Those journalists, who want to carry out professional activities on
the NKR territory, should submit a letter from the editor-in-chief
of their media organization to the NKR Foreign Minister. The letter
should include the period of stay and purpose of the visit, as well
as information regarding which officials of NKR the journalist intends
to interview.

The journalist needs to get a visa to enter NKR, and accreditation
at NKR MFA Information and Public Relations Department – to carry
out professional activities. Detailed information regarding
the procedure is available at NKR Foreign Ministry website
().

– The Azerbaijani side also frequently intimidates foreigners saying
that it is dangerous to be on the territory of NKR, in order to
dissuade them from visiting it. How would you comment on this?

– To put it mildly, those statements are totally untrue. The crime
rate is so low in the NKR that it can compete with the Scandinavian
countries. For the whole post-war period of the NKR there was not
registered a single case involving foreign nationals.

Azerbaijan had better think about the foreigners’ security on its own
territory. The state agencies of various countries have more than once
issued statements about the threat of acts of terrorism in Azerbaijan,
recommending their citizens to refrain from visiting that country.

– How do you feel about those tourists who visited NKR and then turned
to Azerbaijan to exclude their names from the ‘black list’?

– Quite normal. The NKR does not create such obstacles and therefore it
is their personal concern to ask the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan
to remove their names from its ‘black list.’ Unlike Azerbaijan,
NKR respects each person’s freedom of movement.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN SAY PLAYING FIRST SHOW IN ARMENIA IS ‘MORE IMPORTANT THAN OUR NEXT ALBUM’ SYSTEM OF A DOWN TICKETS

NME.com
April 2 2015

The band’s upcoming tour marks the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide of World War I

System Of A Down have discussed their upcoming show in Armenia,
their first in the country of their ancestors.

The ‘Wake Up The Souls’ tour is dedicated to raising awareness of the
Armenian Genocide of World War I. Taking place in order to commemorate
the 100th anniversary of the atrocities, the tour begins on April 6
at the Forum in Inglewood, California, covers 14 dates across Europe
and concludes in North and South America this September.

The band will perform for the first time in Armenia on April 23 at a
free show in Yerevan, the day before the annual genocide remembrance
day. Each member of the group has family originating from Armenia.

Drummer John Dolmayan told Billboard: “As the date gets closer and
closer where we’re gonna embark on this tour, I’m getting more and
more excited about it. That tends to happen for most tours, but for
this one especially, since it’s culminating in Armenia.”

Dolmayan continued: “It’s even more impactful for me as an Armenian
and as a musician. It’s something that transcends music. This is more
important than the next System of a Down album. This is something
that’s far-reaching and it’s actually bigger than the Armenian genocide
itself. This is a world issue.”

The band’s last studio LP was ‘Hypnotize’ back in 2005, and this
will be the first time the band have played live together since their
surprise US show in July 2013.

System Of A Down bassist Shavo Odadjian recently confirmed that the
band are working on a new album. He said: “We’ve already gone. We’ve
written some songs. We’re keeping it to ourselves. We’re getting back
to the bullshit of being together.”

To check the availability of System Of A Down tickets and get all
the latest listings, head to NME.COM/tickets.

TURKEY REJECTS GREEK CYPRIOT BAN ON DENIAL OF 1915 CLAIMS

Anadolu Agency, Turkey
April 2 2015

02 April 2015 22:56 (Last updated 02 April 2015 22:58)

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic says Greek Cypriot
law on banning denial of Armenian claims over 1915 incidents is
“not worth of commenting”

ANKARA

Turkey has rejected the Greek-Cypriot administration’s law on banning
the denial of Armenian claims over the 1915 incidents.

Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said in a statement
late Thursday: “Greek-Cypriot administration’s decision is null and
void for Turkey and not worthy of comment.”

“It is without doubt that those who try to exploit the 1915 incidents
at every opportunity by using simple political ambitions, cannot get
any result,” Bilgic added.

Earlier Thursday, the Greek Cypriot administration’s parliament passed
into law a bill which criminalized disavowal of Armenian allegations
over the incidents of 1915 involving the Ottoman Empire during World
War I.

Thursday’s move by the Greek Cypriot administration — which remains
at odds with the Turkish side over the future of the divided island
— came in the very month when Armenia will hold a mass commemoration
ceremony in capital Yerevan to mark the 100th anniversary of the 1915
incidents on April 24.

The draft bill, which was jointly submitted by all political parties
to the Greek Cypriot parliament, can impose a five-year imprisonment
and fine of EURO 10,000 to those who deny allegations about the
1915 events.

Vartkes Mahdessian, a lawmaker of Armenian origin in the Greek Cypriot
assembly, also announced that a series of events would be organized
in the Greek Cypriot side to mark the 1915 events.

Allegations refuted

The 1915 incidents took place during World War I when a portion of
the Armenian population living in the Ottoman Empire sided with the
invading Russians and revolted against the empire.

A decision by the Ottoman Empire to relocate Armenians in eastern
Anatolia followed the revolts and there were some Armenian casualties
during the relocation process.

Armenia has demanded an apology and compensation, while Turkey
officially refutes Armenian allegations over the incidents, saying
that, although Armenians died during relocations, many Turks also
lost their lives in attacks carried out by Armenian gangs in Anatolia.

The debate and differing opinions between the present day Turkish
government and the Armenian diaspora, along with the current
administration in Yerevan, still generates political tension between
Turks and Armenians.

‘Great tragedy’

Turkey’s official position against the allegations is that Ankara
acknowledges that the past experiences were a great tragedy and
that both parties suffered heavy casualties, including hundreds of
Muslim Turks.

Turkey agrees that there were certainly Armenian casualties during
World War I.

In January, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent invitation
letters to more than 100 leaders, including Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan, to participate in the commemoration of the Battle of
Canakkale on April 24.

Sargsyan reportedly denounced Erdogan’s invitation as a “short-sighted”
attempt to overshadow the 100th anniversary of the 1915 events,
according to armenianow.com.

CAMPUS HONORS 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

El Vaquero, Glendale Community College, CA
April 2 2015

Jack Morello, Staff Writer
April 2, 2015

The board of trustees passed a resolution last September that
officially recognized April 2015 as a “Month of Commemoration of
the 100th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915.” A series of
events and lectures taking place on campus throughout the month will
commemorate the centennial of the genocide.

History and Political Science Professor Levon Marashlian was initially
approached by President David Viar to form a committee that would
implement the goals of the resolution. Marashlian invited Sarkis
Ghazarian, an academic counselor, and Osheen Keshishian, Extended
Opportunities Program and Services counselor, to meet with Viar about
the committee.

Marashlian, Ghazarian, and Keshishian got a head start on planning
the upcoming educational and cultural events. They also decided on
the different representatives to include from groups they believed
would adequately contribute to the cause.

The official committee now consists of Viar, Marashlian, Ghazarian
and Keshishian, who continue to be involved with the planning
and coordinating, as well as administrative assistant to Viar
Ani Keshishian, Board of Trustees member Armine Hacopian, English
professor Lara Kartalian, student affairs coordinator Tzoler Oukayan,
GCC’s Armenian Students Association President Liza Hakobyan and Vice
President Teni Bazikyan. Hoover Zariani from the center for student
involvement and Simon Mirzaian from information technology services
are also in the committee.

By utilizing resources possessed by the students, faculty and staff
on campus, the committee is implementing various programs developed
specifically for the occasion in order to carry out the spirit of
the resolution.

Their plan is to “show that 100 years later, the Armenian people,
both here at Glendale College and around the world, are a thriving
community,” said Ghazarian. “[Armenians] are involved in a whole range
of life’s activities, whether it’s social, economic, or political.”

Bazikyan is looking forward to each of the events because they show
how far GCC has come in recognizing the genocide since she’s been here.

“During the past few years, we’d normally have an event on the
Thursday before the 24th and only collaborate with ASGCC, but this
year we have month-long events where board members and the college
staff are involved,” she said.

Ghazarian credits the extensive program to the resolution and said
that “without the board [of trustees], it would be hard to have the
campus behind you in order to do something like this.”

During an interview in September, Osheen mentioned that there would
be one event per week for four weeks in April. The official list of
events, however, marks that the proceedings land on every Tuesday and
Thursday of April, with two in March and another that runs through
the first week of May.

The campus will be closed for Spring Break (April 11-16), therefore the
committee had to condense their plans into a three- week time period.

A link to the full schedule of events is on the home page of the
college website at

“One of the reasons why it’s important to remember the Armenian
Genocide here at GCC is that it is a part of American history,”
Marashlian said. “We rarely see the topic in textbooks, mainly because
of political considerations, even though it was a big issue from
1915 to 1927, even though the US National Archives contain some of
the most important evidence, even though American Near East Relief
raised millions of dollars to save Armenians, even though the issue
has, and still does come up in discussions and debates at the highest
levels of American governing circles.”

Marashlian will further discuss this issue during his April 9 lecture,
“History and Politics of the Armenian Genocide,” in the auditorium.

Armenian Studies Program
California State University, Fresno
Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Coordinator
5245 N. Backer Ave. PB4
Fresno CA 93740-8001

ASP Office: 559-278-2669
Office: 559-278-2669
FAX: 559-278-2129

Visit the ASP Website:

`The Armenian Genocide: A Centennial Exhibition, 1915-2015′
organized by the Armenian Studies Program
to Open Friday, April 10 at the Henry Madden Library, Fresno State

The Armenian Studies Program is organizing a major presentation, `The
Armenian Genocide: A Centennial Exhibition, 1915-2015 ‘ in the Leon
S. Peters Second Floor Ellipse of the Henry Madden Library at Fresno
State.

The Exhibition opens on Friday, April 10, from 6:00-8:00PM, with a
reception co-hosted with the Friends of the Madden Library, held at
the Second Floor Ellipse. The reception and the exhibition are free
and open to the public, but it is requested that reservations be made
by going to the website
(enter code AGR). The exhibit will be open from April 10-May 29, 2015.

`The Armenian Genocide’ features the newly released =80=9CIconic
Images of the Armenian Genocide,’ which includes photographs of the
Armenian Genocide assembled as an instructional guide for Human Rights
Education, provided by the Armenian National Institute (ANI), the
Armenian Genocide Museum of America (AGMA), and the Armenian Assembly
of America (Assembly).

As more and more photographs of the Armenian Genocide are uncovered,
and as the `Iconic Images’ exhibit illustrates, the general outline of
the main events that defined the genocide can now be illustrated with
compelling and dramatic images that survive from that era.

The photographs were collected from numerous repositories, sources and
individuals, including the US National Archives, Library of Congress,
Near East Foundation, Oberlin College Archives, University of
Minnesota Library, California State University, Fresno Armenian
Studies Program, Republic of Armenia National Archives, Armenian
Genocide Museum-Institute, AGBU Nubarian Library, Armenian Assembly of
America, Armenian National Institute collections, Maurice Kelechian,
and National Geographic photographer Alexandra Avakian. Another
important part of the Exhibit is `The First Refuge and the Last
Defense: The Armenian Church, Etchmiadzin, and the Armenian Genocide.’

The exhibit explains the importance of the Mother See of Holy
Etchmiadzin during the Armenian Genocide and examines the vital
leadership role played by the clergy during the Armenian Genocide,
especially the all-important intervention of His Holiness Catholicos
Gevorg V Sureniants in alerting world leaders about the massacres,
effectively issuing the first `early warning’ of an impending
genocide.

Other sections of the Exhibition are devoted to the Armenian
immigration story and to the experience of Armenians in Fresno.

A special showing of `Churches of Historic Armenia: A Legacy to the
World,’ photographs from the collection of Richard and Anne Elbrecht
will be displayed on the third floor of the Madden Library at the same
time as `The Armenian Genocide’ exhibition on the second floor.

Special thanks to Dr. Rouben Adalian of the Armenian National
Institute, to Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western
Diocese of the Armenian Church, to historian Randy Baloian and
archivist Malina La Porta for assisting Armenian Studies Program
Director Barlow Der Mugrdechian in making the exhibition possible.

Free parking is available in Fresno State parking lots P30 and P31 at
the Shaw and Barton Ave. entrance of the University, near the Madden
Library.

For more information about the presentation please contact the
Armenian Studies Program at 278-2669, or visit our website at

BARNABAS AID REPORTS ON ‘REMEMBERING THE FORGOTTEN GENOCIDE’

Order of St. Andrew, Archons of the Ecumenical
April 2 2015

New York, NY
4/2/2015

In 1900 Christians constituted around 32% of Ottoman Turkey’s
population. Just 27 years later the figure was down to about 1.8%.

In early 1915, a fatwa was issued against non-Muslims in the Ottoman
Empire. Muslims were called to fight the Christian minorities with
whom they had been living as neighbours, albeit not on equal or
necessarily peaceful terms. Many refused to take part, but those who
did inflicted colossal suffering and destruction on the Armenian,
Greek and Assyrian Christians.

It is thought that over 1.5 million Armenians, up to 750,000
Assyrians and up to 1.5 million Greeks – men, women and children –
were killed in the state-sanctioned genocide over a 30-year period;
yet their tragic loss is barely remembered today. The Armenians’
Golgotha and the Assyrians’ Seyfo (“sword”) is a forgotten genocide
against forgotten peoples.

Background As the Ottoman Empire began to crumble in the late 1800s,
the Sultan introduced new reforms to try to prevent the Empire’s
non-Muslim minorities from seceding; the reforms supposedly provided
religious equality, thus appeasing religious minorities. However, the
Turks lost lands in the Balkans after Russia intervened to protect
Slavic Christians from Ottoman brutality in Europe in the 1877-78
Russo-Turkish war. This loss of territory led to a change in Ottoman
tactics: violent suppression of the non-Muslim subjects they feared
were wanting to secede.

Armenians, Assyrians and Greek Christians had been treated as
second-class citizens for centuries, in accordance with Islamic sharia
law, but they had also suffered, unprotected, from Turkish and Kurdish
raids. As they began to campaign for their rights, Sultan Abdul Hamid
II dealt with them “not by reform but by blood.”¹

In 1894-1896 organised massacres against Christians took place, during
which as many as 300,000 Armenians died. Many Christians believed
their best chance of escaping Ottoman dominion was by appealing to
“Christian” powers in the West and Russia. Bar sending warnings –
which went unheeded – and some aid provided by Western Christian
missionaries, no help came.

By 1913, the Young Turks had come to power and begun adopting a
new policy whereby the Ottoman Empire no longer accepted multiple
ethnicities and religions; the militaristic leadership opted to force
“Turkish”, subsequently Muslim, homogeneity on all its subjects.

Continue reading this article in its entirety
on the website of The Barnabas Aid >> at

SYSTEM OF A DOWN PUSH FOR RECOGNITION OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

LA Weekly
April 2 2015

By Theis Duelund
Thursday, April 2, 2015

“A lot of my family on both sides was exterminated,” System of a Down
drummer John Dolmayan begins. “My great-grandfather was shot in front
of his family. Women and children were killed. People were raped.

Everything horrible you can imagine happened.”

Dolmayan calmly recites the laundry list of atrocities committed
against his family when the Ottoman Empire began systematically
exterminating its Armenian minority exactly 100 years ago. His neutral
tone is hard-earned, the product of years of talking to journalists
about a trauma that has been buried in history.

This month, System of a Down embark on their Wake Up the Souls tour,
which kicks off April 6 at the Forum and culminates with the band’s
first performance in Armenia’s capital city of Yerevan on April 23.

“The goal is to raise awareness about the Armenian genocide, and
also to put the idea into people’s minds that justice can prevail,
even if it’s been a hundred years,” frontman Serj Tankian says.

The Armenian genocide is one of the best-kept secrets of the 20th
century, although it was not marginalized at the time it took place.

In 1918, Henry Morgenthau, the U.S. ambassador to the Ottoman Empire,
wrote in his memoirs: “The great massacres and persecutions of the
past seem almost insignificant when compared to the sufferings of
the Armenian race in 1915.” But for the past century, a campaign of
denial orchestrated and perpetuated by one Turkish administration
after another has purposely obscured the historical record.

On April 24, 1915, Ottoman authorities, high on the nationalist
rhetoric of the Young Turks movement, rounded up Armenian intellectuals
and community organizers and executed them. A ruthless propaganda
strategy vilifying the Armenian population, which might as well
have served as the Nazi Party’s template, helped justify what was to
follow. From 1915 to 1918, an estimated 1.5 million Armenians were
massacred, and hundreds of thousands more were driven from their lands.

“It’s time for Turkey to come to grips with its past so we can all
move on.”

“The most common misconception is that the genocide was part of a war,”
says Dolmayan, who was born in Lebanon, where many Armenians fled,
and moved to the United States as a child with his family. “When you
have 1.5 million people from one side die, it’s rarely a war. The
Armenians fought back, but the people who were killed weren’t
soldiers. They were kids, women, the elderly. They were farmers and
craftsmen. They were put in caves and fires were lit in front so they
would asphyxiate. It wasn’t like the Armenian army was beat by the
Turkish army. The intention was to wipe out all Armenians.”

To date, 23 countries have recognized the Armenian genocide. The United
States is notably absent from that list, although 43 states have
officially recognized the genocide, including California. “It’s the
ugly side of realpolitik. It’s shameful to use genocide as political
capital,” Tankian says. “We become apologists for those in Turkey
denying the genocide, for those who put journalists in jail for
questioning the official stand. It encourages more oppression.”

Becoming the poster band for the Armenian genocide was not part of
the plan when System of a Down formed in L.A. in 1994. But history
was an undeniable part of the alt-metal group from the beginning. All
members — in addition to Tankian and Dolmayan, System of a Down
includes guitarist Daron Malakian and bassist Shavo Odadjian —
are from Armenian families affected by the genocide.

“When we first started touring, people in the U.S. didn’t really
know who Armenians were. This was long before Kim Kardashian,” says
Dolmayan, who grew up in the San Fernando Valley. “There wasn’t a lot
of sympathy toward the cause, especially with Turkey being an ally
to the U.S. and NATO. Armenia had been a part of the Soviet Union for
60 years.” (It became an independent country in 1991.) “There was an
education process that had to happen.”

For Tankian, it’s all about learning from history’s mistakes, but
he says that’s impossible so long as Turkey won’t acknowledge the
genocide. “If you go to the third floor of the Holocaust Museum in
Washington, D.C., there’s a quote from Hitler on the wall. As he was
about to invade Poland, he said to his generals, ‘Who speaks today
of the annihilation of the Armenians?’ He thought he could walk away
with impunity from all of the atrocities he was about to commit.”

At its heart, the Wake Up the Souls tour is about preventing such
atrocities from ever being swept under the rug again. Both Dolmayan
and Tankian also stress that the denial of the genocide continues to
shape Armenian-American culture and identity.

“Turkey’s refusal to recognize the genocide is a very unique historical
fact,” Tankian says. “It’s become part of [Armenian] culture to try to
fight this injustice. It’s time for Turkey to come to grips with its
past so we can all move on from this psychological trauma. Armenian
culture is very old and rich. We want to move on and celebrate that,
but we can’t until there’s recognition.”

“Being a victim of genocide, especially one that hasn’t been
recognized, makes you more sensitive to injustice in general,”
Dolmayan adds.

Although System of a Down have a huge Armenian fan base, the April
23 concert in Yerevan will be the band’s first in its ancestral land.

“Armenians have been waiting for System of a Down for years, so
this is going to be big,” Tankian says. “As part of the show, we
will have a three-part video presentation introducing the genocide
and different elements of it in an artistic fashion. It’s all still
coming together.” The band also is looking into streaming the concert
online for fans worldwide.

“My No. 1 personal goal with the tour is to raise awareness about
this catastrophe and make an impact on Turkey and other nations,”
Tankian says. “I’m looking for results, to put it plainly. There is
more awareness today. I’m proud to say that the band has been a part of
that change. The importance of this event is how it affects us today.”

Since forming System of a Down more than 20 years ago, Tankian and his
bandmates have received countless emails and letters from people all
over the world, asking for more information about the genocide. “It
would be nice if Turkey accepted responsibility, but they’re probably
not happy about restitutions and giving land back. It will be costly
for them, but avoiding it won’t make it go away,” Dolmayan says.

Proposals for reparations differ greatly. Key to all of them is the
demand for land return: Many argue that the Turkish-Armenian border as
designated in the unratified 1920 Treaty of Sèvres should be restored.

In Dolmayan’s opinion, this is about more than just what happened to
Armenians a century ago. “The worst thing isn’t that people don’t care
about a genocide that happened a hundred years ago,” the drummer says.

“The worst thing is that people don’t care about genocide happening
today.”