Author: Kajoyan Gevork

ISRAEL GIVES NO DECISION ON ‘ARMENIAN KILLINGS’

Hurriyet Daily News
Dec 26 2011
Turkey

Over their prime minister’s objections, Israeli lawmakers yesterday
began debating a proposal to recognize the “mass killings of Armenians
by Ottoman Turks,” with no final decision.

The discussion was unusually held in the Knesset’s education committee,
described as the weakest committee in terms of its political weight. It
can not make any political decisions. It can only give recommendations
for educational issues or give advice on public debates.

A similar proposal was rejected by parliament in 2007, when ties
between Israel and Turkey were warm.

But relations plunged into deep crisis last year when Israeli forces
killed nine Turks in a raid on a Turkish ferry, part of an activist
flotilla seeking to breach Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza.

“We’ve been working on this for many years,” Georgette Avakian
of the Armenian National Committee in Jerusalem had told Israeli
public radio. “Hope the time has come.” In October, Turkey expelled
the Israeli ambassador and axed military ties and defence trade. Last
week, Israel cancelled completion of a 2008 contract to sell Turkey
aerial surveillance equipment.

A parliamentary supporter of an Israeli memorial day for Armenian
genocide claims – Zahava Gal-On of the left-wing Meretz party – said
the changed diplomatic climate might mean that the measure gains
support this time. “For many years, Israel’s government has refused
to recognise the genocide for cynical, strategic and economic reasons,
connected to its ties with Turkey,” she told the Haaretz daily.

“Now, given the state of relations between the countries, I can’t rule
out the possibility that the foreign ministry is exploiting affairs.”

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen died in orchestrated
killings during the final years of the Ottoman Empire.

But the Turkish government strongly denies this, saying 300,000
Armenians and as many Turks were killed in civil conflict when the
Christian Armenians, backed by Russia, rose up against the Ottoman
Empire.

France’s lower house voted last week to criminalise the denial of
genocide claims in Armenia, prompting Turkey to suspend political
and military cooperation.

OWNER OF LE CAFE DE PARIS TO LEAVE ARMENIA

Yerevan residents will soon be deprived of the pleasure of visiting
a favorite site in the capital – Le Cafe de Paris which is situated
at 23 Abovyan Street.

By a decision of Yerevan Mayor, the cafe operating for 16 years in
the heart of Yerevan will be dismantled as part of a larger drive by
the municipality to improve and “clean up” the city center.

“Mayor Taron Margaryan personally telephoned me and said to be armed
with patience; the cafe would again operate in 2-3 months,” the owner
of Le Cafe de Paris, Valerie-Ashkhen Gordzounian told A1+.

However, the French Armenian businessman is not going to wait, on
December 29 she is leaving Armenia – a country where she has made
so many investments and where she has encountered problems with the
tax service.

Gordzounian’s debt totals 80 million dollars. To repay the debt,
she has already sold half of the cafe.

I have been struggling for justice for 4-5 years. In normal countries
taxpayers are given time to pay taxes. Countries with small economies
should encourage their taxpayers to stay in the country. I cannot
stay in Armenia because there are no favorable conditions for business
here. Perhaps, I was standing in their way as I am easily irritated,”
said the businesswoman.

Valerie-Ashkhen Gordzounian is going to open a cafe in Paris which
she will call Le Cafe d’Armenie

“I am not going to sever ties with Armenia since I like my homeland
very much,” she said.

A protest action will be held in Le Cafe de Paris this evening in
support of the cafe.

MK ELDAD: ARMENIAN GENOCIDE A HISTORICAL FACT
By Gavriel Queenann

12/26/2011

The downturn in relations between Ankara and Jerusalem opens the door
for Israel to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union) says the chill in relations between
Jerusalem and Ankara is the perfect opportunity to recognize the
Armenian Genocide of World War One.

“A genocide against the Armenian people was conducted in Ottoman
Turkey during the first world war,” Eldad told Arutz Sheva. “This is
a historical fact that cannot be denied and should not be denied.”

“The fact that for many years Israel avoided any declaration on this
issue because we have very sensitive diplomatic relations with Turkey
should not affect our decisions [in the present],” Eldad said.

Turkey downgraded diplomatic relations with Israel and began
agitating against the Jewish state in the international arena after
the publication of the UN Palmer Report on the 2010 Mavi Marmara
incident earlier this year.

Nine Turkish nationals on board the Gaza-bound Mavi Marmara were
killed when they participated in a mob that tried to lynch Israeli
naval commandos who boarded the vessel in accordance with international
maritime law.

Officials in Istanbul were incensed that the report concluded
Israel’s blockade of the Hamas terror organization in Gaza was
“legal and appropriate” and – while criticizing Israel for using
“excessive force” – said the commandoes’ lives were in danger.

Turkey rejected Israel’s “expression of regret” for the incident
demanding, instead, a full apology and reparations for the families
of those killed while trying to murder Israeli soldiers.

Now “the very delicate relations with Turkey are only unilateral,”
Eldad explained. “We act as if afraid of them, they are doing
everything that they can to harm Israel… to build roots between them
and the Iranian regime… and to harm Israel in every international
arena that they can – in the United Nations, in NATO, and elsewhere.”

“This is the time to ignore all sensitivities in dealing with Turkey
and say out loud, very clearly, the moral declaration that Israel
recognizes the genocide of the Armenian people.”

Eldad joined MK Zahava Gal On (Meretz) in pushing for the Knesset to
recognize the Armenian Genocide in the Knesset Education Committee
on Monday.

The strange alliance between staunch nationalist Eldad and
extreme-leftist Gal On may well represent a growing consensus that
has support in Israel’s cabinet.

Earlier this year foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman (Israel Beitenu)
indicated recognition of the Armenian Genocide could be one tool in
Israel’s diplomatic arsenal to use in isolating Ankara internationally.

Some 970,000 ethnic Armenians of all ages disappeared from Turkey’s
population registries during the First World War. It is estimated,
however, that as many as 1.5 million were killed in a systematic
series of Turkish pogroms and forced marches.

The harsh crackdown came during an ongoing Russian-backed series
of Armenian rebellions in Turkey. Armenians call the massacre The
Great Crime.

NO EDUCATION COMMITTEE DECISION ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Arutz Sheva

Dec 26 2011
Israel

Monday’s hearing of the Knesset Education Committee on recognizing
the Armenian genocide by the Ottoman Empire in the early 1900s ended
without a decision. Member of Knesset Aryeh Eldad (National Union),
who initiated the hearing, said, “The committee missed an opportunity,
today, to make an historical-moral statement, including a call to
the full Knesset to recognize the genocide of the Armenian and an
application to the education minister to enter the subject into the
Israeli school curricula. Instead, the chairman of the committee gave
in to a dictate from the Prime Minister’s Office, again because of
“the special sensitivity of Israel-Turkey relations.”

Eldad continued, “They always told us we can’t broach the subject
because our relations with Turkey are too good. Now they tell us our
relations are too bad. A moral statement by the Jewish people must
not fall victim to the blackmail of threats from Turkey or Azerbaijan.

FRENCH GAME OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

PRAVDA
Dec 26 2011
Russia

Last week, The French National Assembly approved the law introducing
criminal penalties for denial of the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman
Empire in 1915. Now this wrongful act is punishable by a year in
jail and a fine of 45 thousand euros. Turkey has prepared its harsh
response.

The author of the bill is a member of the ruling party “Union for a
Popular Movement,” Valerie Boyer, but the opposition Socialists voted
“yes” on the issue. Now the bill is in the hands of the Senate. It is
assumed that the upper house of Parliament will pass the document in
the next six months (in the summer of 2012 the powers of the Senate
will expire), and President Nicolas Sarkozy will sign it.

The fact that in 1915 the Ottoman authorities conducted the Armenian
genocide and murdered 1.5 million people (the number most frequently
cited in historical studies) was recognized by France in early 2001.

Five years later, opposition Socialist Party has promised to pass
a law on genocide denial, but then it failed. At the same time the
right-wing President Nicolas Sarkozy in 2007 promised to adopt the
document. By the end of his term he kept his word.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan attempted to prevent a
positive vote in France. He sent a letter to Paris, threatening to
withdraw the Turkish ambassador from France and expel the French one
from Ankara. In case of the adoption of the document the French will
lose access to such sectors of Turkish economy as transport and arms.

Political and cultural contacts will be phased out at the same time.

Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul spoke in the same spirit. “This is
a careless distortion of history for political purposes. It seems
impossible for us to adopt the bill that is currently on the agenda
of the French National Assembly that aims to ban the freedom of denial
of unfair and unfounded accusations against our country and nation. I
hope that France will not make this step, which is an affront to
freedom of expression,” he said.

On the voting day, over four thousand Turks gathered in the heart of
Paris. However, shouting in the streets as well as letters by Gul
and Erdogan had no effect on the deputies. The author of the bill,
Valerie Boyer, accuses the Turks of “serious interference in the
internal affairs of France.”

Minister for Relations with Parliament Patrick Olier tried to smooth
the situation. “This text is not directed against anyone, it is
intended to complement our criminal law. But we cannot ignore the
reaction of our Turkish friends. The French government is convinced
that the common strategic interests and cooperation for peace and
freedom in Syria and Afghanistan, working together in NATO and the
G20, economic and cultural cooperation is strong enough to overcome
the trials that can survive the relationship, ” he said.

This time Ankara did not hear his words. The Turkish Ambassador in
Paris Tahsin Burdzhuoglu said that he was returning to his homeland.

Turkish media wrote that France would lose projects worth 40-50
billion dollars. Following this decision, Erdogan called the French
“an example of racism, discrimination and xenophobia.” Turkey stopped
the cooperation with France under the NATO framework. Now, the French
military planes and ships will not be able to use Turkish airfields and
ports. Economic and political cooperation has been minimized as well.

On his part, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian expressed
satisfaction with the decision of the French deputies. “France has
reaffirmed its reputation of a cradle of human rights and once again
proved the commitment to universal values. 10 years ago, recognizing
the Armenian genocide, the French people have demonstrated that human
rights are their highest value. They reiterated that crimes against
humanity do not have statute of limitations, and that their denial
should be unequivocally condemned,” he said.

The events of nearly a century ago that happened during the First
World War are still on the minds of not only historians but also
politicians. The evidence of genocide is the photos of those years,
reports of foreign diplomats and missionaries, and telegrams of Turkish
statesmen. However, the information the Turkish archives is still
unavailable, and there is still no complete picture of the tragic
events of 1915. The main question is how many Armenians were killed,
and whether the events should be considered a deliberate extermination
on ethnic grounds or “just” a mass murder.

The Armenian side insists on the deliberate genocide of half a million
people (sometimes the figure of two million is cited, sometimes
one million). Historians of various countries talk about 600 to 800
thousand. In any case this is a very large number. One can also add
that in those years, hundreds of thousands of Armenians fled from the
Ottoman Empire and many Armenian churches have been destroyed. Cases
of repression against the Armenians that the Turkish authorities
often considered disloyal were ongoing before and after 1915.

The Turks say that no more than 200 thousand have died, and then
largely because of hunger, disease and epidemics. The reason is clear:
if the genocide is recognized, the descendants of the victims will
have grounds to claim billions of dollars in damages. Therefore,
the modern Turkish Republic is trying to stop even the talk of the
genocide. Any attempts to recognize the genocide outside of the
country cause extremely painful reaction.

At present, the Armenian Genocide is recognized (among others)
by Russia, France, Greece, Poland, Canada, 42 U.S. states and some
regions of the UK, Spain and Australia. The EU does not impose the
recognition of genocide as a condition of accepting Turkey into its
ranks, but this is one of the reasons why Greece, Cyprus and France are
blocking the entry. At the same time, Germany is unlikely to recognize
the genocide in the near future. The country has approximately three
million Turks, and the German authorities are unlikely to make them
angry. However, the fact of the massacre (not genocide) was recognized
by the Bundestag in 2005.

The answer to the question why France is at the forefront of the
process of recognition of Armenian genocide lies in the fact that the
local Armenian community is numerous and influential. It is believed
that today nearly half a million Armenians reside in the country,
and if we count those partially Armenian, the number will amount to
over a million.

As for French politicians of Armenian origin, two names can be
highlighted. The first one is the former Prime Minister Edouard
Balladur of France, who was born in Turkey. The second is a close
ally of Nicolas Sarkozy, Patrick Devedjian, now occupies the post of
general secretary of the ruling party “Union for a Popular Movement.”

He is considered the main lobbyist of this document. Ultimately,
he was heard by the deputies of the ruling party. But the Socialists
also have their Armenians.

The decision on punishment for the Armenian Genocide had an internal
policy component. Perhaps, Sarkozy and his supporters were driven by
compassion for the victims of the events that took place 96 years ago.

France is facing presidential election, and Sarkozy’s rating is
very low. It was very important for him to enlist the support of the
Armenian community. He could clearly use extra half a million votes.

This factor outweighed even the possible economic and political losses
from reducing the level of relations with Turkey. Paris may have not
thought about long term consequences.

Vadim Trukhachev

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE: MP PIRATED COMPLAINT

San Francisco Luxury News

Dec 26 2011

Publication Date 26 December 2011
Today’s news from France …

Le site Valerie Boyer, the UMP MP behind the proposed law against the
denial of genocides including the Armenian, Sunday was the victim of
piracy by militant pro-Turkey.

elected, claiming a victim of threats and insults, has announced its
intention to file a complaint.

In a telephone interview broadcast by target=”_blank”> The member of
the Bouches-du-Rhone said he had received of “death threats, rape,
destruction and abuse and insults.” “I find it very shocking,” she
says, adding that parents and children were also targeted.

“It can not be insulted as a person but also in relation to his duties,
said the member. I have to complain, I will.”

The website of the member hacked

Earlier Sunday, the site of the member of the Bouches-du-Rhône with a
black screen with the flag of Turkey and an unsigned message in two
languages, Turkish and English, attacking the French Government and
the Armenian community in France.

“You, the Armenian diaspora, are such cowards that you do not have
the guts to open the Armenian archives and to face the truth,” the
authors write the message, for whom “truth” is you can not speak of
“Armenian genocide”.

“You, the French are so pitiful and pathetic that you ignore the truths
of the vote,” they added, referring to presidential and parliamentary
elections to come to France.

The National Assembly passed the bill Thursday penalizing the challenge
of any genocide, including the Armenians in 1915, provoking the wrath
of Turkey , freezing its military cooperation with France and the
recall of its ambassador in Paris.

bill by Valerie Boyer, MP UMP in Marseille which has a large Armenian
community , received support from the government that allowed its
inclusion in the agenda of the Assembly. The text must now be placed
on the agenda of the Senate. The president of the National Assembly,
Bernard Accoyer, considered unlikely that the text finally adopted
by Parliament by the end of the legislature in 2012.

TURKISH ARMENIANS MARCH FOR DINK ACTION

26/12 17:44 CET

Two hundred Turkish Armenians have demonstrated in Istanbul, accusing
the government in Ankara of dragging its feet over the murder of a
prominent Turkish-Armenian journalist.

Hrant Dink was killed by a Turkish ultra-nationalist five years ago.

His killer has been convicted.

But the protesters are angry that cases against others accused of
conspiracy still have not been resolved.

Newspaper columnist and activist in the Armenian community, Garo
Paylan, said: “The State isn’t able to dissociate itself from the
murderers and the instigators of the murder itself. Many things
echoed in our minds, especially with the bill debated in the French
parliament.”

Dink was Turkey’s best known Armenian voice abroad. He was frequently
criticised by Turkish nationalists for saying the mass killing of
Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War One was genocide.

He was shot in broad daylight in the street as he left his office in
January 2007.

‘WE DON’T WANT THIS TO END WITH A DISCUSSION’: KNESSET COMMITTEE POSTPONES VOTING ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL

epress.am
12.26.2011

Amid heightened tensions between Turkey and France, after the latter
passed a bill criminalizing the denial of genocide, the Knesset’s
Education Committee on Monday held a session on recognizing the
Armenian Genocide, Ynetnews reports.

“This subject is being discussed in the Knesset today regardless of
the recent negative developments between Israel and Turkey,” said
Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, who attended the hearing.

“There is an element of recognition – as the State of Israel – that
we will not ignore another people’s calamity, despite diplomatic
pressures and the current political situation.

“We believe that as humans, as Jews and as citizens of the State of
Israel – along with members of Knesset that are not Jewish – we must
put the subject on the national agenda. We stand before the world
with the utmost moral demand,” he said.

The Knesset speaker added that “even the Turks understand that we
cannot ignore our commitment as people, as Jews and as citizens
of Israel.”

MK Zahava Gal-On, chair of the Meretz faction, said that “acknowledging
the horrors that took place in the past should not affect future
relations with Turkey.

“[Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip] Erdgoan’s statements are made
to create internal propaganda,” the member of Knesset noted, adding
that the Turkey will find a way to preserve its diplomatic ties with
Israel based on common interests.

Gal-On stated that the Knesset must take a clear position on the
Armenian Genocide after long years of silence. “The moral duty to
recognize the Armenian Genocide is not a partisan issue.

“As a daughter to the Jewish people, who underwent a holocaust that
has no precedent in human memory, we have the moral duty to show
sensitivity to the calamity of other nations,” she said.

“A million and a half people were butchered. I know this is a sensitive
topic, and that throughout the years it has been used as a foreign
policy tool in the hands of Israel’s governments, but we have a moral
duty. It is inconceivable that our school curriculums are silent on
the Armenian Genocide,” she said.

Former member of Knesset Haim Oron, who has been dealing with the
subject for many years, added: “We don’t want this to end with
this discussion, but with a statement that expresses the Knesset’s
recognition of the Armenian Genocide.”

Three years ago the Foreign Ministry tried to thwart a hearing dealing
with the Armenian Genocide, but this time officials in the ministry
presented a different view, claiming that the subject should be
determined “by historians, not politicians.”

National Security Adviser Yaakov Amidror asked Knesset Speaker Reuven
Rivlin to postpone the discussion, but Rivlin refused, saying: “As a
nation that has suffered through a holocaust, we cannot ignore this
issue, and therefore the hearing will be held as scheduled.”

At the end of today’s meeting, the committee postponed voting on
the resolution, to provide time for the deputies to study Armenian
Genocide resolutions approved by the parliaments of other countries.

LE CAFE DE PARIS OWNER FINALLY DECIDES TO CLOSE UP SHOP AND LEAVE ARMENIA

epress.am
12.26.2011

Ashkhen (Valerie) Gordzounian, the owner of Le Cafe de Paris situated
on Yerevan’s Abovyan St., assured Epress.am today that the Armenian
authorities will bother her also in the sale of her cafe. Note, the
French-Armenian cafe owner has decided to sell her cafe and finally
leave Armenia.

“For 16 years, I invested all that I had in Armenia, and I am
considered one of the first investors, but so far our government has
created only obstacles for both me and the companies I manage. It
pains me that in leaving Armenia, I am leaving my good friends, who
I acquired during these years. The state doesn’t think that Armenia
needs the Armenian Diaspora, and to fix the country, like air and
water, outside assistance is necessary.  My example will be a lesson
for many who will be careful in investing in Armenia. State bodies
are elected to ease this country’s burden, to serve the people and
the economy, to create means… but if they are unable to help the
people, they shouldn’t remain,” she said.

According to her, the Armenian authorities’ campaign against her has
a long history.

“Four years ago, personal issues with my husband became the reason
for harassment against me. From the beginning, my husband, with
major considerations of owning the business, was creating various
conspiracies against me. Eventually, [my husband] having close
relations with the current authorities and being unable to snatch
my property, the persecution against me began on a state level. The
[Ministry of] Justice helped, after the divorce, for my husband
to acquire my two apartments, but he was unable to take Le Cafe de
Paris. On Aug. 10, 2010, the tax department inspected my company and
registered accounting violations. They showed me a deed of 48 million
drams [approx. $125,153 USD] which I was obliged to pay in a very
short period of time. I became witness to things never heard or seen
of in Armenia, and I understood that a person who has problems with
the tax office has issues with not only the justice ministry, but
also a number of other agencies. It turned out that because of daily
interest, the amount [owed] became 80 million drams [approx. $208,589
USD],” she said.

The diaspora Armenian entrepreneur described how she contacted head
of the RA Presidential Oversight Service Hovhannes Hovsepyan, RA
Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan and different appropriate agencies,
asking for more time to pay off her debt.

“What surprised me was the treatment by our judges and authoritative
bodies. The judges are bribed – there’s no justice. They obliged me
to pay off my debt in a brief period. The Armenian Diaspora likewise
responded and some of my friends appealed to the prime minister, to
provide more time, but the prime minister refused. Vahe Petrosyan,
whose company was dealing with my company’s accounting and as a
result of whose work the debt was formed, being well acquainted with
Armenia’s laws, had nothing in his name; consequently, he and the
accounting firm he managed couldn’t have paid that debt.

“Not having the money, I was forced to sell the coffee roasting
company belonging to me and I paid my debt,” she said.

The Le Cafe de Paris owner asserts that till today, different measures
are applied against her.

“I didn’t know that there is a molybdenum mine beneath Le Cafe de
Paris; otherwise why are the Armenian authorities interested in this
company? The final period has already been placed, and Le Cafe de
Paris is up for sale. I am leaving Armenia – disappointed and in deep
pain. I did everything to save the company I founded and cherished,
but in vain. My only goal is that after me, Le Cafe de Paris will have
a virtuous owner, not for an ‘unshaven,’ ‘thick-necked’ and ugly person
[i.e. oligarch] to come and manage all this. I want for my employees
to remain and be in safe hands. I will leave for Paris and I will
work in my cherished business, which I will establish after erasing
my Armenia memories,” she said.

According to Gordzounian, the recent wave of protest shown by local
residents on social networks (by creating groups in support of the
cafe and its owner) was an indescribable surprise for her.

Gordzounian adds that she is leaving Armenia with pain in her heart.

“I am a part of this people; I buried my friends at Yerablur [military
cemetery]; I participated in the Karabakh War. I did all this with
my own will ad today I am horrified when I see that day by day
Armenians are leaving Armenia. I am terribly concerned that people,
disappointed, are leaving, and leaving are intelligent and capable
people. Here they pressure and trample on educated people; here,
everything beautiful is eliminated and sunk by the ‘thick-necked’
and ‘unshaven’ [i.e. the oligarchs].”

STATEMENTS ON IMPEACHMENT CAN ONLY HELP ‘REMAIN AFLOAT’ – ARMENIAN POLITICIAN

Tert.am
26.12.11

Stepan Safaryan, Chairman of the Heritage parliamentary group, believes
the demand for a change of power by the opposition Armenian National
Congress (ANC) is wrong.

It is wrong to appear before voters only with demand for impeachment,
he said.

“You cannot have voters take to the streets without proposals
concerning Armenia’s future,” he said.

In her turn, the Heritage group member Anahit Bakhshyan said that
statements on impeachment can only help “remain afloat.”