3 DAYS WITHOUT GAS FROM TBILISI
Panorama.am
13:27 22/04/2009
On 23-26 April Georgian gas-transport company will stop providing gas
to Armenia because of some reconstruction activities on the highway
gas pipe-line near Tbilisi, the company reports. "ArmRusgasprom"
CSJC announces that the consumers will be provided natural gas from
the company’s reserves.
FINAL TALLY PUTS NAJARIAN ON TOP
Jason Wells
Glendale News Press
April 22 2009
CA
Provisional and absentee ballots put him 236 votes in front of newcomer
Laura Friedman.
Councilman Ara Najarian overtook Councilwoman Laura Friedman as the
top vote-getter in the April 7 citywide election after officials
counted the 2,225 provisional and late vote-by-mail ballots Friday.
The newly reformed City Council certified the results Monday night.
With 9,473 votes, Najarian edged Friedman by 236 votes to take the
No. 1 spot, according to the city clerk’s office. Councilman Frank
Quintero remained firmly in third place with 8,857 votes.
While the final tally was not expected to significantly alter the
precinct reporting — where Najarian, Friedman and Quintero were
nearly always among the top three at northern polling stations —
Najarian said Monday that he considered the final tally an "absolute
mandate" against political operatives from other campaigns that
"were specifically out there trashing me."
"Everything I said in the campaign was based on reality, on fact,
things that I knew I had some influence over the next four years,"
Najarian said.
Given the recurring campaign tactics from some Armenian candidates to
encourage single-voting, thereby reducing the number of votes acquired
by their competitors in a race with more than one available seat,
Najarian said the feat was even more significant.
He was also the top vote-getter when he was first elected to the City
Council in 2005.
For her part, Friedman said she was thrilled to get more than 9,000
votes, and that she hadn’t put a lot of stock in the rankings.
"I’m just happy to have one of those seats; I think that’s important,"
she said.
Najarian is also poised to become chairman of the Los Angeles County
Metropolitan Transportation Authority in June. The top position comes
at a time when the agency is preparing to divvy billions in federal
stimulus and Measure R funding to county cities.
"There’s just a huge amount of money that’s flowing through the
county for transportation," he said, adding that it would be his job
"to make sure Glendale’s needs are not overlooked."
The last Glendale representative to serve as MTA chairman was
former Mayor Larry Zarian, who was later appointed to the California
Transportation Commission.
ARMENIAN CHURCH IN JERUSALEM CAUGHT IN PALESTINIAN-ISRAELI CONFLICT (PART II)
Jirair Tutunjian
Keghart
11 April 2009
Toronto
Several Canadian-Armenians who are interested in financially helping
the St. James Patriarchate in Jerusalem have contacted me. I have been
in touch with some friends in Jerusalem and elsewhere to determine
whether there is an officially recognized organization, which promotes
donations and the raising of funds for St. James Monastery.
Earlier it was not mentioned that the St. Tarkmanchats Secondary
School, was the best in Jordanian-ruled Jerusalem in the ’50s and the
’60s. Because of emigration, the school is now a shadow of its past
glory. I understand that it now has about 100 students. I remember my
"graduating" kindergarten class (1954) had 64 students!
The St. Tarkmanchats Alumni Association in Los Angeles raises money for
the school. Since this year is the 80th anniversary of its founding,
a group of former students will make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in
April. I am certain that during their stay in Jerusalem they will
extend further financial assistance.
Jerusalem Armenians are caught between a rock and a hard place.
Before 1967, Armenians lived in reasonable comfort with
Palestinians. Now the community is in a vise–Moslem fundamentalism
on one side and Jewish fundamentalism on the other, not to mention
ultra nationalism in both camps.
At present, Armenians living in the occupied West Bank, including Old
Jerusalem, and Israel, are isolated from Armenians living in Arab
countries–Lebanon, Syria, and even Jordan. One can argue that it
would be advantageous for Armenians–as a community–to be part of a
future Palestine because such a development would end or reduce their
isolation from their Armenian brothers and sisters in the Arab Middle
East. One devastating impact has been the soaring number of Armenian
intermarriages with Christian Arabs. To put it bluntly, a shrinking
community means fewer people in the marriageable demographics.
As well, a peaceful solution to the Arab/Israeli conflict would, one
would expect, reduce ultra nationalism and religious extremism among
Palestinians and Israelis. I believe extremism is often a "survival
mechanism", an attempt to preserve one’s "threatened" identity. When
there is peace, extremism should diminish, making life tolerable for
all, including Armenians.
The idea of making Jerusalem an international city is a vehicle without
wheels. Even before Palestine was split up, there was serious talk
of making Jerusalem an international city. The subject has come up
repeatedly. To this day, the United Nations considers Jerusalem corpus
separatum. However, since Israelis and Palestinians are against the
idea of an international Jerusalem, the proposal will stay a dream.
I exchanged several emails with a prominent leader of the Armenian
community in Jerusalem. I have known him all my life. My inquiries
focused on the comment that the St. James Brotherhood is in no need
of financial assistance from the Diaspora. According to the long-time
community leader, the statement does not reflect reality. In fact,
he became irate at the observation.
I do not want to start "yes, they do" and "no, they don’t" exchanges. I
am not an expert on the finances of the fellowship, but I know the
following:
During the Ottoman rule of the Holy Land (early 16th century to 1917),
the Armenian Church experienced a litany of difficulties–confiscation
of property, heavy taxation, arbitrary rule, corruption. The financial
pressures were somewhat offset by donations from pilgrims, Armenian
amiras, wealthy Armenians in India, and the rent that the St. James
Brotherhood collected from its properties outside the monastery.
Because of usurious taxation, early in the 17th century the
Patriarchate was in heavy debt. It was rescued from financial disaster
through the assistance of an Armenian merchant in Aleppo, plus nine
wealthy Armenians in India and in Constantinople. In other words,
400 years ago, Armenian patriots (supposedly not as enlightened as
contemporary Armenian leaders and intellectuals) stepped forward
and rescued Armenian Jerusalem. They did not say the situation is
untenable and walked away.
>From 1917 to 1948, the picture changed because the British Mandate
was mostly a "rule by law" administration. However, this did not mean
the financial picture of improved.
1. The monastery had to provide accommodation and assistance to the
thousands of genocide survivors who sought sanctuary in the Armenian
Quarter.
2. Because Cilicia and Western Armenia was emptied of Armenians
(1915-1922), there were no more pilgrims who would donate funds to
the monastery.
3. To guarantee the survival of the new community, the Patriarchate
initiated a variety of valuable projects–St. Tarkmanchats School,
the Gulbenkian Madenataran, improvements to the printing press, etc.
By the way, very few students paid tuition; and those who did,
paid $5 to $10 a year. Some of the school expenses were covered
by donations from the Gulbenkian Foundation, the Armenian General
Benevolent Union, and from Armenian-American individuals. However,
despite this assistance, we were aware, in the ’50s and the ’60s,
that months would go by and the teachers would not be paid because
there was no money. Everyone was waiting for the check from the
Armenian-American parerars [benefactors].
Despite these difficulties, the school remained the best secondary
school in Jerusalem as I mentioned above. The graduates and students
of St. Tarkmanchats, now spread all over the world, have made great
contributions to Armenian communities from Los Angeles to Paris,
from Cyprus to Australia. Former students are now scientists,
industrialists, authors, classical music composers, medical doctors,
philosophers, journalists, teachers and professionals in various
fields. Here, in Toronto, you will find a number of former Jerusalem
residents who are leaders of Armenian community centres, churches
and political parties.
Since 1967 The St. James Brotherhood has no pilgrim revenues, because
there are no pilgrims, and several traditional donors are not there;
but it receives rental income from properties.
Led by Patriarch Torkom Manoogian, the Brotherhood has undertaken
much-needed infrastructure developments. Please note that since the
Armenian Quarter is one-sixth of Old Jerusalem, there is a great
deal of real estate to restore, renovate and to maintain. Consider
how much a North American household pays for the repair of a single
plumbing problem. Multiply that by thousands of dollars.
To continue the survival and prosperity of this priceless national
edifice, we have to pitch in… financially. In the absence
of an organized charity, you may send your donations to the
"Armenian Patriarchate, Jerusalem, Israel". The donations are tax
deductible. Meanwhile, I will continue my contacts with current and
previous Jerusalemite Armenians to determine whether we can launch
a formal organization, which would channel financial donations to
the Patriarchate.
The St. James Brotherhood (Armenian Patriarchate) has always been
"allied" with St. Etchmiadzin and has recognized the Catholicos there
as Amenayn Hayotz. From 1915 to the late ’40s, most of the members were
orphans who had survived the genocide. Whereas from early ’50s to 1967,
they were natives of Lebanon and Syria who had come to Jerusalem to
attend the seminary and become priests. There were also a number of
Jerusalem-born seminarians and priests.
After the Six-Day War, Israel illegally annexed Old Jerusalem and
occupied the West Bank. This meant that Lebanon- or Syria-born young
men could no longer attend the St. James Seminary in Jerusalem. Thus,
the number of seminarians began to decline. This spelled debacle
to the fellowship. No seminarians meant no future priests for the
Diaspora parishes "allied" to St. Etchmiadzin.
Certain disaster was prevented after independence of Armenia, when
young men–from Armenia–began to attend the seminary. In time, many
became priests. That is why the St. James Brotherhood is "full" of
Armenia-born priests. With the dwindling of the Armenian Diaspora in
the Middle East, it is likely that Armenia (Artsakh?) will continue
to be a major source of new seminarians and priests even when the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved.
EARTH DAY WITH VIVACELL
ArmInfo
2009-04-21 17:56:00
>From Apr 15 to May 2 the Fiundation for the Preservation of Wildlife
and Cultural Assets in the Republic of Armenia with the support of
ViVaCell-MTS is organizing a series of environmental events dedicated
to the Earth Day.
In 2009 the Earth Day nEtwork launched a new global two-year-campaign
under the slogan "Green Generation." FPWC as a regional partner o the
Earth Day Network adopted this idea modifying it in a local approach
under the slogan: Green Generation Armenia.
On Apr 21 at 04:00 the Green Generation Armenia Campaign will have
its kick off with the exhibition of children paintings in VivaCell-MTS
service centers located in different regions of Armenia and in Yerevan
(3 Amiryan Str.).
The pictures drawn by children are a special call to save the nature,
The exhibition in VivaCell MTS service centers will be opened during
the days of Earth Day Celebration to remind the public about nature
and the necessity to care for our environment.
During the exhibition passers by will also notice children in bright
raincoats decorated with the slogan "Save the Nature" distributing
flower seeds, thus inviting everybody to participate in the
celebrations of Earth Day.
Tree planting and garbage collecting events in different marzes of
Armenia will take place in frame of Earth Day events. Everybody is
given an opportunity to make his contribution and to plant a tree
by sending an SMS to 3008 short number, to donate a tree to Green
Generetion Armenia project.
Since the first Earth Day in 1970 this day is every year celebrated
globally. More than billion people participate in Earth Day activities,
making it the largest secular civic event in the world. The Earth Day
Network NGO grew out of Earth Day. The organizatio whose main office
is situated in Washington DC has a global reach with a network of
more than 17,000 partners and organizations in 174 countries. In Dec
2008 the Foundation for the Preservatioin of Wildlife and Cultural
Assets joined the Earth Day Network as a regional partner.
THE TIMES: A PROMISE OF PEACE IN THE SHADOW OF ARARAT
ArmInfo
2009-04-16 17:27:00
At last the Turkey-Armenia border may finally be opened. But the move
will stir up deep and long-held regional feelings, The Times writes.
‘Years ago Andrei Gromyko, the veteran Soviet Foreign Minister, was
once buttonholed by his irate Turkish counterpart. "Why do you show
Mount Ararat, which lies in Turkey, on the flag of Soviet Armenia? Do
you lay claim to our territory?" "No," replied Gromyko. "Why do you
have a crescent on your flag?
Do you lay claim to the Moon?"
Armenia is now free of Soviet control. But the Turkish-Armenian
border, sealed during the Cold War years when it marked the tense
boundary between Nato and the Soviet Union, remains closed. And though
Armenians gaze across at Ararat’s elusive peak, they still cannot
cross over into the lost provinces of their historic homeland that
lie in northeast Turkey.
Something, however, may at last be moving. Ali Babacan, Turkey’s
Foreign Minister, will visit Yerevan today for a meeting of the Black
Sea Economic Cooperation Council, an 11-nation regional grouping set
up in 1992. But the real issue for him and for his Armenian hosts is
the border. Can both countries set aside their historic animosities
and suspicions and dismantle the last Cold War barbed-wire barricades?
Barack Obama hopes so. Indeed, in Istanbul last week he challenged
his Turkish hosts to "move forward" and establish, for the first
time, diplomatic ties with their Armenian neighbours. Much more than
just the border is at stake. A reconciliation between Turkey and
Armenia would help to ease more than 90 years of bitterness dating
back to the Ottoman massacres of Armenians between 1915 and 1917,
which still cast a long shadow over the politics of the Caucasus
and the West’s attitudes to Turkey. An open border would not only
bring huge economic benefits to both sides: it could also help to
thaw one of the last "frozen conflicts" in Europe’s backyard, the
military stand-off between Armenia and Azerbaijan over control of
the ethnically Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.
It could also help Russia to regain its balance within the turbulent
Caucasus and Turkey to extend its reach to its cultural Central
Asian hinterland. And it could remove some of the taboos from today’s
Turkish politics, where any mention of the Ottoman killings of up to
1.5 million Armenians produces a venomous nationalist reaction.
The issues are all interlinked, and, bedevilled by emotion, are
exceptionally difficult to resolve. At the heart of the stalemate
lie the fears and political isolation of Armenia, a tiny country
of less than three million people, that has historically been at
the mercy of its powerful neighbours. Armenia, the first nation to
adopt Christianity, lies on the front line of Islam, and has always
looked to Russia for protection from Turkey and its Muslim Azeri
neighbours. It is a role that Moscow has embraced eagerly, and one
that has underpinned Russia’s military confrontation with Turkey,
which for centuries has shaped the history of both countries.
But the forcible incorporation of Armenia into the Soviet Union in 1922
changed the relationship. There is lingering resentment in Yerevan of
Moscow, especially after the postSoviet economic collapse when Russia
put pressure on Armenia by cutting fuel supplies. The impoverished
nation shivered through several winters. Armenia hoped to open up to
the south. But although the border with Turkey was briefly opened,
it was closed swiftly in 1993 after Armenia invaded Azerbaijan to
establish a corridor to the besieged Nagorno-Karabakh, and Turkey
sided with Muslim Azeris.
Turkish support is vital to Azeri hopes of regaining control of
its enclave.
Azerbaijan has therefore reacted ferociously to hints of a
Turkish-Armenian rapprochement. It has suggested that it would use
its oil muscle and interrupt supplies through the vital pipeline from
Baku to southern Turkey unless Armenia made concessions.
The threat seems to have rattled Ankara. Recep Tayyip Erdogan,
Turkey’s Prime Minister, poured cold water yesterday on suggestions
from Armenia that the border could be opened in time for the World
Cup qualifying tie in October. President Sarksyan said he hoped he
would be able to cross the border into Turkey to watch the football
game. Not until Nagorno-Karabakh is settled, Mr Erdogan retorted.
The Islamist Prime Minister cannot be seen to abandon his Muslim
neighbour.
But Turkey has also long harboured hopes that it could spread its
influence far beyond Azerbaijan into former Soviet Central Asia, which
is Turkic-speaking and desperately in need of some Western knowhow
and investment. These hopes came to little in the early 90s. Now they
are being revived. Ankara can ill afford to upset the Azeris.
Reconciliation with Armenia, however, and an end to the Caucasus
stalemate could benefit everyone. It would confirm the status of Turkey
as the superpower within the Black Sea council. Turkey may look to the
EU as a supplicant, but to its neighbours it looks an economic giant.
Armenia, blocked to the north by the instability in Georgia and
fearful of being too dependent on Russia, would have an alternative
utlet to the world through Turkey. And economic cooperation could
soothe historic hatreds.
For Russia, there would also be gains. Paradoxically, the Russians
have never had better relations with Turkey than now, largely because
of the huge volume of trade, the massive flow of Russian tourists
and the reduced threat from a NATO member on Russia’s borders. But
these smooth relations are fragile.
Historic competition for influence and for the region’s energy
resources could flare up again. Russian actions in Georgia raised
hackles in Turkey.
Moscow needs a settlement to ensure that there is no new "South
Ossetia" in the offing – and that the Nagorno- Karabakh dispute does
not turn violent again, leaving Moscow and Ankara on opposite sides.
Mount Ararat is a peak of startling beauty, especially in the
morning sun.
The reputed resting place of the Ark and revered by so many in the
region, it has become a symbol of division. An open border would
allow all to approach its heights,’ The Times writes.
TURKISH JOURNALISTS SET FREE 2 HOURS LATER
ArmInfo
2009-04-14 17:08:00
ArmInfo. Turkish journalists taken under control in Margara section
of the Armenian- Turkish border were set free two hours later.
As the Turkish newspaper "Zaman" reports, on April 13, Monday, 5
Turkish journalists came to Yerevan to prepare a reportage dedicated
to the situation on the border in the context of possible opening of
the Armenian-Turkish border and moods among the citizens of Armenia, as
well as to analyze the current situation between Armenia and Turkey on
the threshold of the meeting of BSEC countries’ foreign ministers. As
on Monday the Armenian Foreign Ministry was closed in connection with
the announced day-off, the Turkish journalists decided to go to the
Margara crossing point of the Armenian-Turkish border without any
permit. According to the source, the journalists of Turkey-based Fox
TV and newspapers "Hurriyet" and "Zaman" tried to make shooting near
Margara, but Armenian and Russian frontier guards came to the place
immediately. They told the journalists that shooting was forbidden
in that place, and took them to the military unit.
According to the Turkish source, journalists were given tea, coffee
and cakes, and asked to tell in detail why they came to Armenia. After
almost a two-hour conversation in friendly atmosphere, the journalists
were set free.
SUREN MANUKYAN: TURKEYS POLICY OF NEGATION COULD CAUSE A NEW GENOCIDE
PanArmenian
April 14 2009
Armenia
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "International recognition of Genocide as prevention
method" discussion was held in Yerevan today. The discussion was
organized by Areg Cultural and Scientific Youth Association with the
assistance of UNO Yerevan Representation Social Information Center.
The discussion featured statements by MFA International Organizations
Department Manager, Dzyunik Aghajanyan, The Armenian Genocide Museum
Assistant Director Suren Manukyan and UNO Social Information Center
official representative Armine Alajyan.
MFA International Organizations Department Manager, Dzyunik Aghajanyan
stressed, "Genocide can’t be organized without previous planning. It
was a premeditated process that ensued in massacres and deportation."
The Armenian Genocide Museum Assistant Director Suren Manukyan stated
that every Armenian has a subconscious interest in Genocide issue,
adding, " Turkey’s policy of negation could cause a new Genocide."
Suren Manukyan also dwelled on falsifications and distortions of
historical facts regarding the Armenian Genocide.
CONFERENCE ON "SOCIAL IMPACT OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS ON ARMENIA"
armradio.am
14.04.2009 13:05
The Ministry of Labor and Social Issues, the United Nations (UN),
World Bank (WB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) offices in
Armenia, organized a conference on "Social Impact of the Global
Economic Crisis on Armenia." The objective of the conference was
to discuss consequences of the global economic and financial crisis
and find measures to mitigate its impact on vulnerable groups. The
conference brought together around 120 participants.
Representatives from international organizations warned today that the
global economic and financial crisis could have a serious impact on
the Armenian economy and affect the country’s ability to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015. UN, WB and IMF officials
told a conference that while the effects on the Armenian economy are
already being felt, the population is now starting to feel the social
impact as well.
The exposure and impact of the crisis varies across countries and
sectors, but it is becoming more apparent that what started as an
economic crisis is now turning into a human development crisis. During
the first two months of 2009 the unemployment rate in Armenia has
increased, while the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has decreased by 3.7
percent compared to the same period in 2008. Moreover, non-commercial
private transfers drop ped by about 35 percent in February 2009
compared with a year earlier.
According to the World Bank report on "Implications of the Global
Economic Crisis for Poverty in Armenia," the current crisis could
push 172,000 more people below the poverty line in 2009-10, increasing
the total number of poor to an estimated 906,000 people, out of which
297,000 people will be extreme poor. A large part of Armenia’s gains
in reducing poverty over the last years would be erased.
"In many developing countries, the consequences of the crisis could be
a possible reversal of the gains in human development and progress
towards the achievement of the MDGs, especially in the areas of
healthcare, including reduction of child mortality, improvement
of maternity health, and education," said Ms. Consuelo Vidal, UN
Resident Coordinator.
Acknowledging the government’s commitment to maintain the current
level of funding for the social sector, including salaries, pensions,
family and other benefits, UN Agencies will support the government’s
efforts in devising solutions that will draw together all stakeholders,
including international organizations, private sector and the civil
society. In addition, the UN in Armenia is in the process of tailoring
its current programmes to address the needs of those most affected
by the crisis.
"We need to be fast and flexible and seek cost-effective solutions to
emerging problems, particularly, focusing on bringing international
experience and knowledge to help in developing recovery mechanisms,"
Ms. Vidal emphasized.
"Economic growth in Armenia has led to substantial poverty reduction,
but these achievements are now at risk. The global economic crisis
will have potentially serious implications for poverty and this
calls for significant responses by the Government of Armenia and its
development partners," said Aristomene Varoudakis, World Bank Armenia
Country Manager.
The Government has shown commitment by accelerating the implementation
of World Bank funded projects under the new IDA Fast Track Facility.
Such policy responses may include support to the development of
small and medium sized businesses, design and implementation of labor
intensive programmes, including public works, better monitoring of
the human development impacts of the crisis, development of food
security initiatives, efficient budgetary allocation and spending
in social sectors, continuous support to the government in capacity
building to provide quality social services, adjustment and expansion
of existing basic social safety net instruments to better target the
most vulnerable groups, as well as generation of reliable data on
children and women for tailored policy interventions.
ARMENIA, IRAN DISCUSS WAYS TO FINANCE ENERGY PROJECTS
IRNA
Apr 14, 2009
Tehran, April 14, IRNA — Visiting Armenian Energy Minister Armen
Movsisyan conferred with Iran’s Minister of Economy and Finance
Shamseddin Hosseini on ways to finance energy projects to be
implemented by Iran in Armenia.
In a meeting, the two sides called for expansion of mutual ties in
the field of energy, oil, gas, technical and engineering services.
Hosseini said that the Islamic Republic of Iran is willing to
cooperate with Armenia in developing infrastructure of the former
Soviet republic.
Movsisyan appreciated opening up of credit line for Armenia by the
Export Development Bank of Iran.
He hoped that the ground for expanding two countries economic and
trade cooperation would be prepared in near future.
Nazi camps: Hell on earth
18:07 | 10/ 04/ 2009
MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti military commentator Ilya Kramnik) – On April 9,
1945, the inmates of the Buchenwald death camp near Weimar, Germany,
sent a radio message to inform the Allies that the Nazis were forcing
them to evacuate the camp, and to request assistance.
After they received promises of help from the U.S. Third Army, they
stormed the watchtowers and killed the remaining guards using arms they
had been collecting since 1942. The Americans, who reached Buchenwald
on April 11, liberated 21,000 prisoners.
In 1995, the UN decided to mark April 11 as the Day of Liberation of
Concentration Camps.
Another relevant date is the Holocaust Memorial Day, marked on January
27, the anniversary of the liberation of the concentration camp at
Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Homo Sapiens, seldom good-natured and almost never vegetarian, are this
planet’s most dangerous predators. The 20th century was the bloodiest
century in human history, when millions were killed in concentration
camps.
It would be wrong to blame the Nazis for inventing concentration camps.
Similar facilities first appeared during the Civil War in the United
States in 1861-65, and the term itself became established during the
Boer War (1899-1902), when such camps were set up to sever the supply
routes of the Boer guerrillas. Farmers and their families who supplied
foods to the rebels were forced into those camps. Since supplies were
sent there only when all other institutions received their share, a
considerable number of the camps’ prisoners starved to death.
Turkey and Austro-Hungary set up concentration camps during the First
World War, mostly as a form of genocide against Armenians and Slavs,
respectively.
Russia did not escape that evil either. In the first half of the Soviet
history, the Gulag camps were used to isolate (or liquidate)
politically disloyal citizens. It was also an efficient economic
mechanism used for building vital facilities such as railroads and
canals.
However, the German camps were much better organized and pursued the
most inhuman objectives. The Nazis started setting up the camps as soon
as they came to power in 1933, but they became especially infamous
during the Second World War (1939-1945).
The Nazi camps can be divided into two groups, the labor camps and the
death camps.
In the labor camps, millions worked to produce the commodities Germany
needed to fight the war. Many of them died because of inhuman
conditions and hard labor.
Extermination was the goal of the death camps, where the "inferior
people," especially Jews, Gypsies, Slavs, Soviets, and anyone else who
was not an "Aryan" according to the contemporary Nazi race terminology,
were forced. Over three million of the six million European and Soviet
Jews died there, as well as four million Russians and hundreds of
thousands of other Soviet peoples (out of the total 27 million who
perished in WWII), approximately 200,000 Gypsies, as well as Serbs,
Poles and others.
Treblinka, Belzec, Maidanek, Sobibor, Chelmno, a major part of the
Auschwitz-Birkenau and other camps were cogs in a huge and well-oiled
Nazi extermination machine. Inmates were shot, gassed, and clubbed to
death, and died in inhuman medical experiments. By the end of the war,
some labor camps, including Buchenwald, were turned into extermination
camps.
The Nazis especially hated Jews, Gypsies and Soviet prisoners, above
all Russians.
The "enemies of the Reich" were killed not only in German camps but
also in camps in collaborationist countries, for example at Jasenovac
in Croatia and Salaspils in Latvia.
The camps were structural units of SD (security service) and SS (the
German abbreviation for Protective Squadron, said to be responsible for
the vast majority of war crimes during the Nazi rule), but people were
killed also in the so-called Stalags, or prisoner-of-war camps, of the
German army.
Western servicemen were kept in more or less human conditions in
accordance with international conventions, but for Russian prisoners
these camps were mostly a stopover between a labor camp and a death
camp.
Nazi successors and their accomplices often say that Soviet prisoners
were treated ruthlessly because the Soviet Union had not signed the
1929 Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
But they neglect to mention that the Soviet Union joined the convention
in 1931 in a special declaration signed by Foreign Minister Maxim
Litvinov, and that the Geneva Convention bound the Germans, who were
among the first to join it, to respect its norms irrespective of
whether or not their adversaries joined it.
The final stage of the war saw the most ruthless treatment of
prisoners. The Nazis began mass executions in an attempt to conceal
their crimes. Revolts broke out in many camps that were close to the
frontline, because the inmates, doomed to death one way or another,
hoped to survive until Soviet or Allied troops reached them. The
Buchenwald uprising was one of such revolts.
After the war, the Nazis’ crimes were carefully considered during the
Nuremberg Trials, which passed death sentences on the main culprits.
Unfortunately, the idea of concentration camps did not disappear along
with the Third Reich. The goals of those who are using it today may be
different, but the names Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo still jar on the
ears.
The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s and do not
necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.