Author: Badalian Vardan

99e ANNIVERSAIRE DU GENOCIDE DES ARMENIENS
Des centaines d’Arméniens ont manifesté le 24 avril à Téhéran face Ã
l’Ambassade de Turquie

Le 24 Avril, plusieurs centaines d’Arméniens ont manifesté devant
l’Ambassade de Turquie à Téhéran (Iran) à l’occasion du 99e
anniversaire du génocide arménien.

Selon le site arméno-iranien Hyeli.com étaient présents à la
manifestation le député arménien du Parlement iranien Karen Khanlarian
ainsi qu’un grand nombre de responsables associatifs et religieux. K.
Khanlarian a dans son discours noté que les déclarations d’Erdogan
présentant ses condoléances aux Arméniens était un « pas positif » de
la Turquie dans la voie de la reconnaissance du génocide arménien. Un
manifeste demandant à Ankara la reconnaissance du génocide a été Ã
l’Ambassade de Turquie.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 26 avril 2014,
Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

99e ANNIVERSAIRE DU GENOCIDE DES ARMENIENS
A Ninotzminda (Djavakhk, Géorgie) inauguration d’une statue dédiée au
génocide arménien

Au Samtskhé-Djavakh, région à forte majorité arménienne de Géorgie
s’est déroulée le 23 avril une messe à l’église Sourp Sarkis de
Ninotzminda à la mémoire des victimes du génocide arménien. Puis dans
la cour de la Maison de la culture arménienne de la ville s’est
déroulée la cérémonie de l’inauguration d’une statue dédiée au
génocide. Etait présent Hovhannès Manoukian l’Ambassadeur d’Arménie Ã
Tbilissi. « Cette statue dédiée au génocide arménien est un pas de
plus de notre pays ami, la Géorgie, dans la reconnaissance du génocide
» dit-il dans son discours. H. Manoukian a appelé la Turquie Ã
reconnaitre le génocide arménien. Parmi les personnalités présentes,
l’archevêque géorgien Nikoloz, le représentant de l’Eglise géorgienne
pour la région d’Akhalkhalak, le bienfaiteur Armén Gharslyan, des
députés géorgiens, des personnalités politiques de la région, ainsi
que de nombreux Arméniens et Géorgiens venus du Djavakhk et de
Tbilissi.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 26 avril 2014,
Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

BOXE
Anouch Krikorian (Arménie) championne du monde junior de boxe…le 24
avril dédie son titre aux victimes du génocide

Le 24 avril, lors des championnats du monde junior de boxe amateur qui
se déroulent à Sofia (Bulgarie), l’Arménienne Anouch Krikorian (51 kg)
est devenue championne du monde en s’imposant largement en finale face
à l’italienne Irna Teston. « Je suis heureuse, et en ce 24 avril, je
dédie cette victoire au souvenir des victimes innocents du génocide
arménien » dit Anouch Krikorian qui ambitionne un titre olympique. A
Sofia, chez les hommes, Narég Minassian a conquis une médaille de
bronze mondiale. L’Arménie est ainsi revenue de ces championnats du
monde junior de boxe avec deux médailles.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 26 avril 2014,
Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
April 26 2014

DavutoÄ?lu says Turkey’s 1915 statement achieved its goal

April 25, 2014, Friday/ 18:01:43/ TODAY’S ZAMAN/ ANKARA

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet DavutoÄ?lu has said that a statement
from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an regarding the tragic events
of 1915 that led to relocation of Armenian population in Anatolia in
the First World War in Ottoman Turkey has accomplished its goal,
considering the reactions worldwide and that the statements was
primarily aimed at Armenians, rather than other countries.

`The statement of our prime minister brought positive reactions. It
has been accepted that regarding this issue, the Turkish people have
taken a historic step for dialogue and friendship. The message was
intended for Armenians. It was a humanitarian message. The reactions
from Armenian groups were extremely positive. The message has achieved
its goal,’ said DavutoÄ?lu during a joint press conference with his
Sudanese counterpart, Ali Ahmed Karti, on Friday.

In a historic first for the Turkish Republic, ErdoÄ?an extended
condolences to the grandchildren of Armenians who lost their lives in
1915. His surprising statement came just one day before April 24, when
Armenians commemorate the events they describe as genocide under
Ottoman rule. The statement was issued by the Prime Ministry on
Wednesday in nine languages — Turkish, German, French, English,
Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Western Armenian and Eastern Armenian — in
a move to make a sure the statement is heard and understood by a wide
audience.

`The friendly hand that we have extended has got its response,’ added DavutoÄ?lu.

When asked what Turkey’s next step might be after the 1915 statement,
DavutoÄ?lu replied that on a common historical ground, the two sides
could discuss the ways how a new future could be established.

Speaking to private broadcaster NTV on Thursday night, DavutoÄ?lu noted
that in Turkey’s 1915 statement there was a `call to build a consensus
on history.”

`The Turkish prime minister has extended Turkey’s hand to Armenia to
bring our hearts and minds closer,’ said DavutoÄ?lu, adding that `if
the statement gets an answer, then we can build a future together. If
not, we will go back to the previous situation.’

The Turkish foreign minister noted that the statement demonstrates a
just and humane stance and proposes the idea of building a future
together.

DavutoÄ?lu also said that relations between Armenia and Turkey needed
normalization, which would improve bilateral political relations, help
establish peace among the two countries’ peoples and fix
Armenia-Azerbaijan relations in the Caucasus.

In addition, DavutoÄ?lu emphasized that now it was Turkey’s turn to
expect Armenians to offer their condolences to Turkey for the murders
committed by the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia
(ASALA) against Turkish diplomats, to avoid one-sidedness.

ASALA is known for terrorist attacks against Turkish targets in Turkey
and a number of countries throughout the 1970s and 1980s. The leftist
group is responsible for the deaths of more than 40 Turkish diplomats
abroad and has been mostly inactive since 1985.

DavutoÄ?lu says stability in Sudan means stability in Africa

DavutoÄ?lu stated that Turkey is ready to cooperate with Sudan for the
stability of the African continent, adding that stability in Sudan
will mean stability in the continent. The Turkish foreign minister
said that during his meeting with Karti, bilateral ties between the
two countries and development in Africa were discussed.

`We are ready to make all efforts to aid the recovery of Sudan and to
enhance the bilateral ties between Turkey and Sudan,’ he said, adding
that maintenance of security and stability in Sudan was of great
importance to Turkey.

The Turkish foreign minister also said that Turkey and Sudan had
agreed to increase their trade volume, which now stands at $300
million. DavutoÄ?lu also thanked Sudan for supporting Turkey’s
candidacy for the UN Security Council in 2015-16.

>From his part, Karti said that Sudan would like Turkey to play a
greater role in the region, adding that Sudan hopes to further enhance
cooperation with Turkey particularly in the field of trade and the
military.

`We wish to benefit from Turkey’s experience. Turkey’s support for
Sudan is very important for us. Sudan could serve as a gateway for
Turkey in the African continent,’ said Karti.

The Sofia Globe, Bulgaria
April 24 2014

Armenians react to Erdogan’s statement not recognising the 1915 genocide

Written by Independent Balkan News Agency on April 24, 2014 in Europe
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The message of condolences that Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan addressed for the first time on the occasion of the day of
remembrance of the Armenian Genocide, was met with mixed reactions,
with Armenia reacting strongly.

“In Erdogan’s statement there are the well known positions of the
Turkish propaganda. We actually expect something different from
Turkey,” Yerevan said, rejecting the condolences message.

However, the deputy of the patriarchal seat of the Armenians in
Istanbul, Monsignor Aram Atesyan, said “it is a moving historical
statement, which eased our pain”.

Cihan News Agency, Turkey
April 25 2014

Turkey acknowledges 1915 tragedy for the first time

TR_ISTA – 25.04.2014 09:06:54

On Wednesday, a day before Armenians mark the 99th anniversary of the
1915 killings by Ottoman Turks, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan
released a statement regarding the issue, which came as a surprise to
many.

In the statement, which was issued in in Turkish, Armenian and seven
other languages, Erdoðan offered Turkey’s condolences to the
descendants of those who were killed during the tragic events in 1915.
Erdoðan called the events of World War I “our shared pain” and
acknowledged that the deportation of Armenians from Anatolia in 1915
had “inhumane consequences.” Although Erdoðan’s move was hailed by the
US State Department as well as top officials from the European Union
who regarded it as a positive step, the Armenian National Committee of
America (ANCA) dismissed Erdoðan’s statement as “simply 99 years of
genocide denial repackaged.”

Vatan daily columnist Okay Gönensin wrote in his Thursday piece that
99 years ago, over 1.5 million people — the Armenian citizens of the
Ottoman Empire — including leading politicians, authors, journalists
and businesspeople based in Ýstanbul, were sent for execution, but
this fact has long been ignored by the Turkish state. According to
Gönensin, for a long time, only those who lived at the time really
knew what happened. “The state did not want us to learn what happened.
We were only told about the acts of nationalist Armenian gangs ahead
of World War I. Much later on, we learned that 1.5 million of the
then-10 million population of Anatolia were Armenians. And the
terrifying fact that these 1.5 million people were sent to their
deaths had been hidden from us. By hiding and ignoring, some thought
that this ‘massive disaster’ was going to vanish from the memory of
humanity. However, it did not and the last ring in this chain was the
murder of Hrant Dink,” commented Gönensin, referring to the 2007
murder of the Turkish-Armenian journalist.

Gönensin noted that while concealing the truth, the state of Turkey
put a lot of effort in spreading the claim that “Armenians killed more
Muslims,” during years of denial. According to Gönensin, with
Wednesday’s statement, Turkey for the first time officially recognized
this tragic incident and acknowledged that those responsible for it
committed a crime against humanity.

Cengiz Çandar, a columnist with the Radikal daily, wrote on Thursday
that acknowledging what really happened in 1915 is a matter of ethics
and humanity. Çandar shared a conversation he once had with Dink, in
which Çandar asked the late journalist whether he considers the 1915
incidents “genocide,” as he never heard Dink mention the word
“genocide,” which is constantly used by the Armenian diaspora. Çandar
recalled Dink’s response: “I am an Armenian. For us, this an
acknowledgement by nature. We never talk about it to each other. But
we know it.” Çandar wrote that he had many other Armenian friends
during his school years in Kayseri, and none of them ever spoke about
the “terrible things” that happened in 1915, neither among themselves
or with Turks.

GÜNAY HÝLAL AYGÜN (Cihan/Today’s Zaman)

Daily Sabah, Turkey
April 25 2014

ERDOÄ?AN’S STATEMENT RELIEVES, ARMENIANS GRIEVE

by Daily Sabah

ISTANBUL ‘ Armenians Archbishop in Turkey, Aram AteÅ?yan, supported
Prime Minister Tayyip ErdoÄ?an’s condolences to 1915 on Thursday
describing it ‘exiting’ and ‘historical’ move.

“The Prime Minister’s speech and attitude relieved the Armenians
grieves”, AteÅ?yan said “This statement is a true response to those who
are against Turkey’s peace process” he added as appreciation on behalf
of himself and the Patriarchate.

“I’m sure the statement is important step to build up new friendship
bridges in the future,” AteÅ?yan stated.

The Archbishop said it’s the first time for a high ranking government
official to make a similar statement in Turkey.

Statement may moderate Armenian diaspora’s stance

Dikran Gülmezgil, head of the foundation of Armenian community
Karagözyan said “Mr. Prime Minister’s attitude to Armenian citizens
was quite positive and his latest statement satisfied us, God bless
Turkish PM.”

Gülmezgil added that the statement will positively affect 1915 process
and it may moderate diaspora’s negative stance.

Daily Sabah, Turkey
April 25 2014

ARMENIANS IN TURKEY PRAISE ERDOÄ?AN’S COURAGE, OTHERS SURPRISED AND CONFUSED

by Yusuf Selman Ä°nanç
Updated : 25.04.2014 10:22:45
Published : 24.04.2014 23:19:44

ANKARA ‘ Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statement on the 1915
incidents, delivering his condolences to the victims’ families and
stating that he shares the pain, have echoed strongly in the world. In
many non-Turkish media outlets, it was considered surprising to hear
such a statement from Turkey’s prime minister. In the statement
released earlier on Wednesday, Erdogan underlined the “shared pain”
endured during World War I and expressed his condolences to the
grandchildren of Armenians who lost their lives “in the context of the
early 20th century.”

The website of the German daily Tagesspiegel said it was the first
time that a Turkish leader had delivered such a statement, but
stressed it was not an official apology. It also emphasized that the
prime minister’s announcement was released in Armenian and called it
an “extraordinary step.” The website of the Süddeutsche Zeitung daily
said the statement was “surprising.”

German national broadcaster Deutsche Welle commented that Turkey has
extended its hand to Armenia and named the statement an “unusual
gesture.”

Meanwhile, the France 24 channel said such a statement was “very rare
and something that should be underlined.”
The Le Monde French daily said it was the first time that Erdogan had
talked explicitly about the 1915 incidents, while the Le Parisien
daily called the step a “political earthquake.”

The Washington Post wrote that Erdogan’s condolences were
“remarkable,” as the events of 1915 have been spoken of very little.
The Wall Street Journal said Erdogan delivered a “conciliatory” and
unprecedented message, as the 100th anniversary of what the newspaper
called the “Armenian Genocide” approaches next year. ”Erdogan
reiterated a long-held Turkish position that the deaths of millions of
people during the violence of the period should be remembered without
discriminating as to religion or ethnicity,”

Reuters reported. The Guardian newspaper said the events of 1915 have
caused an “unpleasant” dispute between Turkey and Armenia.
Turks and Armenians (residing in Turkey) were not surprised with the
statement as they have been observing the improvements in Turkey’s
stance on human rights, democracy and its policies, shedding the
previously established highly nationalist approach to the country and
region’s history.

A prominent Armenian intellectual residing in Turkey, Markar Esayan,
said: “My family and I have praised the statement. Erdogan’s words
made us really happy. It was a historic day for us.” Touching on the
differences between the diaspora and Turkish Armenians, Esayan said,
“Armenians living in Turkey are aware of the change and the reforms.

They demand more reform and democracy as the Turks do. They can make a
comparison between Turkey’s previous approach to the 1915 incidents
and the changing stance in the Justice and Development Party’s (AK
Party) era.”

He added, “The diaspora left Turkey 99 years ago. They may not see the
change as clearly as Turkish Armenians.

Yet, Turkey must admit that the diaspora will adapt itself to this
change as time goes by.” He also underlined the difference between
officials of the diaspora, including lobbies and foundations, and
ordinary people. “My friends and relatives that I spoke to were so
happy on Wednesday,” he added.
The Armenian Archbishop in Turkey, Aram Atesyan, supported Prime
Minister Erdogan’s condolences on Thursday, describing the message as
an “exiting” and “historic” move. “The prime minister’s speech and
attitude relieved the Armenians’ grievances,”
Atesyan said. “This statement is a true response to those who are
against Turkey’s peace process,” he added in appreciation on behalf of
himself and the Patriarchate. “I’m sure the statement is an important
step to build up new friendship bridges in the future,”
Atesyan stated. The Archbishop said it’s the first time a high-ranking
government official made such a statement in Turkey.
Dikran Gülmezgil, head of the Armenian community foundation
Karagözyan, said “Mr. Prime Minister’s attitude to Armenian citizens
was quite positive, and his latest statement satisfied us. God bless
the Turkish PM.” Gülmezgil added that the statement will positively
affect the 1915 process, and it may moderate the diaspora’s negative
stance. The Armenian Patriarchate released a statement yesterday,
expressing its pleasure with the Prime Ministry statement. In the
text, the Prime Ministry statement was described as a significant
milestone for building a bridge between the Turkish and Armenian
nations. It also noted: “Mr. Erdogan’s statement has opened a new page
in the two nations’ relations.
We as the Armenians, citizens of the Turkish Republic, believe that
the day when Turkish and Armenian people’s pain stops is coming.”
Orhan Dink, brother of prominent Turkish-Armenian intellectual and
journalist Hrant Dink who was murdered in 2007, told the U.K.-based
newspaper The Guardian: “Today’s message of condolence is a very
important step. If democracy is to be built in Turkey, this is one of
the most basic bricks to do so. Both for Armenians in Turkey and for
me, it is important that the prime minister of the Republic of Turkey
made such a statement. Some might say that it came late, but the
important thing is that this first step was made. This step has to
bring both societies toward normalization.”
Despite Turkey’s efforts and Turkish Armenians’ positive response to
the prime minister, the diaspora preferred to repeat previous
allegations. Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Executive
Director Aram Hamparian said Turkey was highly isolated over its
approach to the 1915 incidents, pointing out, “Ankara is repackaging
its genocide denials. The fact remains that, as this cold-hearted and
cynical ploy so plainly demonstrates, Turkey is, today, escalating its
denial of truth and obstruction of justice for the
Armenian genocide.”

Today;s Zaman, Turkey
april 25 2014

Azerbaijan blasts Armenia for indifference to ErdoÄ?an’s condolences

April 25, 2014, Friday/ 19:35:33/ TODAYSZAMAN .COM/ ISTANBUL

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has harshly criticized Armenian
leadership for failing to respond to Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip ErdoÄ?an’s condolences for 1915 events.
`It’s clear who does not want peace in the region,’ Aliyev said in
response to Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan’s speech that criticized
Turkey during a summit on the Eastern Partnership program in Prague.
Aliyev said Sarksyan’s using an `opportunity to attack Turkey’ because
Turkish representatives are absent, but he is here to respond,
according to a transcript provided by Azerbaijan’s APA news agency.
Aliyev said ErdoÄ?an offered Armenian leadership to open all archives
to historians and ErdoÄ?an extended condolences to Armenians. He added
that although the US and the EU highly appreciated the position of
ErdoÄ?an, `it seems that this is not sufficient for the Armenian
government.’
In response to Sarksyan’s criticism that Turkish-Armenian border still
remains closed, Aliyev said the border has been shut down since
Armenian occupation of Kalbajar region in 1993.
Aliyev recalled that all Azerbaijanis, composed of at least 30 percent
of the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave, were deported from the territory and
seven adjacent regions to Karabakh were occupied ` 20 percent of
Azerbaijan’s territories.
The president said Azerbaijanis were subject to `ethnic cleansing’ and
said the conflict has not been resolved yet despite four UN Security
Council resolutions, European Parliament and Parliamentary Assembly of
the Council of Europe resolutions. Aliyev noted that Armenia
disregards these resolutions and continues occupation of the
territories which have never belonged to them.
Aliyev said `we want peace, we want to get back our territories.’ He
urged Armenia to start withdrawing its troops from the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan.
`It’s easy to do that. Only Armenia should had political will,’ Aliyev
stressed. He also questioned why Armenia is not targeted with
sanctions and no punishment is inflicted on them. He added that
`illegal, criminal’ so-called representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh
regime obtain visas to European capitals.
`This is unbearable and this must be ended,’ Aliyev said.

Daily Sabah, Turkey
April 25 2014

ARMENIAN ANTI-PEACE RADICALS BURN TURKISH FLAG

by Daily Sabah

YEREVAN, Armenia ‘ Armenian anti-peace radicals burned a Turkish flag
during a demonstration for the 99th Armenian genocide anniversary.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an offered his condolences
for the 1915 events earlier on Thursday which the world media
welcomed. However, a group of Armenian radicals rejected ErdoÄ?an’s
olive branch offer by burning a Turkish flag.

Young radical protestors were seen holding banners saying
“compensation, condemnation, recognition.”