Author: Kajoyan Gevork

AUTHOR EXPLAINS HOW ECHOES OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CONTAIN LESSONS FOR TODAY

WNPR News
Feb 17 2015

Tue, Feb 17, 2015
By Harriet Jones

A century ago, in April 1915, an event began that’s come to be known as
the Armenian Genocide. One scholar believes that massacre should remind
us of the long-term implications of events playing out in our own time.

It’s thought that up to 1.5 million people may have been massacred
or expelled from their homes in the Ottoman Empire during the worst
atrocity of World War I. For almost a century, Turkey has denied the
enormity of the event, but that may be changing.

Thomas de Waal works for the Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace. Recently, he returned to Turkey with a group American Armenians
— descendants of those who fled the genocide in the early 20th
century.

“We were actually greeted incredibly warmly,” de Waal told WNPR. “In
a couple of places, Armenian churches had been reopened, people came
out and shared stories about their Armenian grandparents. So on the
ground in Turkey, that memory is coming back and those people to
people contacts are happening.”

His experiences are recounted in a new book, Great Catastrophe —
that’s the term many Armenians use for those months in 1915.

De Waal spoke recently at Connecticut College, and he said it is
language that illustrates how divisive those events remain. The
subtitle of his book is Armenians and Turks in the Shadow of Genocide.

The term genocide — the attempt to eradicate an entire people — was
first coined in the 1940s, and de Waal said that while at a scholarly
level, it is correct to call what happened to the Armenians genocide,
the use of the word has unfortunate consequences.

“It’s become a barrier to the solution of the problem,” de Waal said.

“Which is for Armenians and Turks to communicate more, and understand
each other’s history. And you’ve got this big, dark ‘genocide’ word
standing between them.”

The descendants of the Armenian diaspora continue to seek closure, and
that search has shaped U.S. politics. The Armenian lobby is powerful
in Congress, but still finds itself at odds with America’s political
alliance with Turkey.

De Waal said the fact that this is still relevant today should alert
us to the lingering effects of events in our own time. “It only
takes a few weeks or months to commit an atrocity. But the effects
can cascade across the generations, and trauma can be transmitted
from generation to generation.”

It also, he said, illustrates the importance of good history — an
understanding of events that tells a human story and not a morality
play.

ANKARA MUNICIPALITY HAS STARTED HANDING OUT BOOKS ABOUT THE ARMENIAN CAUSE

19:52, 17 February, 2015

YEREVAN, 17 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. Ankara Municipality has started
handing out books about the Armenian Cause to educational and
scientific institutions ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, as the Turkish Haber3 news website reports, according to
“Armenpress”.

It is mentioned that Ankara Municipality has bought from “New Turkey”
publishing house the 5-volume “Collection on the Armenian Cause”,
the 12-volume “Ottoman Project” and 20 other booklets on the Armenian
Cause to hand out to schools, libraries, research centers, as well
as associations and foundations.

Currently, more than 20 countries and numerous international
organizations have recognized the Armenian Genocide. However, as in the
past, Turkey continues to deny the mass killings of Armenians in the
Ottoman Empire during WWI (there were nearly 2 million Armenians living
in the Ottoman Empire prior to WWI, nearly 1.5 million Armenians were
killed between the years of 1915 and 1923, the remaining 500,000 became
dispersed across the globe). The Parliaments of Greece, Switzerland,
Slovakia and Italy have passed draft laws criminalizing denial of
the Armenian Genocide.

US REVISING APPROACHES TO REGION – ARMENIAN ANALYST ON ASSISTANT SECRETARY’S VISIT PLAN

17:28 * 17.02.15

The United States is essentially changing its policies in the
South Caucasus region, an Armenian analyst has said, commenting on
Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland’s scheduled trip to
Yerevan and Baku.

“Nuland’s visit coincides with a period that essentially changes the
situation in both the region and international politics. This first
of all has to do with the Russia-West relations, with the United
States revising its policies in Europe and the Eurasia region,”
Ruben Mehrabyan told Tert.am.

Asked whether the US official, who last year visited Ukraine amid
the heated turmoil in Euromaidan to offer support and aid to the
protesting activists, may be interested in the domestic political
developments in Armenia (given that the opposition is conducting a
rally in Yerevan on February 20, the day of her visits, the expert
ruled out such a possibility.

“Not in the least,” Mehrabyan said. “I have no doubt that there
will be rumors on the internal political development, but I wouldn’t
absolutely connect the rally with that,” he replied.

With respect to Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan’s decision to
recall the Armenia-Turkey protocols, the president noted that the
international community has seen during the past six years which of
the state is really responsible for the last closed border in Europe.

“I think so. At least experts and the press have repeatedly commented
on the issue. This opinion was shaped against the cooling of US-Turkey
relations. I think that at least the United States understands Armenia
well. But we should not feel satisfied because Europe’s only closed
border remains closed. Moreover, Turkey’s policy is helping Russia
to pursue its strategy.”

Since Armenian-Turkish rapprochement in different periods and at
different levels was a response to signals by the United States and
international community, have not they given up the idea?

“Yes, during the post-Soviet period the United States has exerted
serious efforts at Armenia-Turkey rapprochement. However, it does not
concern the Armenian-Turkish protocols. Let us remember that it was
Moscow that announced Abdulla Gul’s invitation. And although I myself
am supportive of Armenian-Turkish rapprochement, I have from the very
beginning been against the protocols for the simple reason that they
would not be effective. I have on several occasions cited a number
of reasons. I think it was a trap set by Russia, and, regrettably,
the West fell into it.

“And, in fact, this is a stage that has reached its logical completion
and failed. And now Armenian-Turkish relations are worse than they
were before the protocols were signed. I think that recalling the
protocols affords an opportunity for a new process in the context
of new reality and reformulating a number of all-informant issues on
the agenda. I do not think they are impossible to settle.”

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE: SIX YEAR-OLD HASMIK GOES IN FOR TONSIL REMOVAL, DISCHARGED WITH BRAIN DAMAGE

Ani Hovhannisyan

00:06, February 17, 2015

Three months ago six year-old Hasmik could be seen playing with her
friends in Bayandour, the Shirak village in which she lives.

Today, she isn’t allowed to leave the house due to a simple tonsil
operation that went terribly wrong. The young girl is too weak and
frail to play with her friends.

Last November 28, Hasmik was taken to the Mother and Child Austrian
Hospital in Gyumri to have her tonsils removed. The little girl
remained in the operating theater for several hours and the doctors
didn’t tell Hasmik’s relatives what had happened.

At 2p, nearly four hours after Hasmik was admitted to surgery, a doctor
came out, showed the relatives on of Hasmik’s removed tonsils and, in a
serious tone, told them there was an issue that needed to be discussed.

Mrs. Hasmik Martirosyan, the girl’s grandmother, told Hetq that the
surgeon in charge Yeranouhie Varagyan, explained that some of the
anesthetic had gotten into the girl’s face and had caused swelling.

“She said that everything would be back to normal within the hour and
that they were monitoring the child,” Mrs. Martirosyan said, adding
that the doctors nevertheless seemed panicky and that additional
medical equipment was being taken to the surgery unit.

Upon seeing the commotion, the relatives demanded to see Hasmik. It was
only after raising a ruckus that the relatives were told that Hasmik
was in very critical condition and that the hospital had called for
experts from Yerevan.

Hasmik’s mother, Lianna Rafayelyan, describes what happened next.

“I entered the surgery and saw that the child’s head had expanded to
three times its normal size. I approached, removed the smock, and saw
that her entire body from the neck down was covered in bruises and
swelling. It turned out that they had given her too much anesthetic.

To undo the swelling, the doctors had stuck pins into the child’s
body.”

The doctors told the family that the anesthetic overload had caused
the girl’s brain cells to die.

Hasmik was then transferred to the Sourb Astvatzamayr Medical Center in
Yerevan where she sunk into a coma for six days. The diagnosis on the
medical chart accompanying Hasmik to Yerevan read that the patient had
brain ischemia (is a restriction in blood supply to tissues, causing
a shortage of oxygen and glucose needed for cellular metabolism)

For that entire week, doctors at the resuscitation until could only
tell the girl’s relatives to pray.

When Hasmik awoke from her coma, she couldn’t move the left side of
her body. Due to the swelling of the blood vessels, the capillaries
in the child’s brain had burst and a blood clot formed.

When relatives confronted the surgeon, otolaryngologist Yeranouhie
Varagyan, she shifted all responsibility to the anesthesiologist.

Varagyan also told Hetq the same story.

“The examination committee from Yerevan found that my surgery to
remove the tonsils went without problem. You should direct your
questions to the anesthesiologist because the equipment had broken
down. I am amazed you even telephoned me because I operated without
a drop of blood being spilled.”

Hetq also contacted the anesthesiologist, Asik Dalibaldyan, for his
side of the story. At first, he said he would get back to us in a few
hours because he would be attending a wedding. Hours later, he never
answered our telephone calls.

The next day, Dalibaldyan answered our call. “I won’t comment over
the phone. You’ll have to come to the hospital. How is it that three
months after the surgery, when we took the girl home all fine and well,
that a problem has now appeared?”

Dalibaldyan added that the director of the Mother and Child Austrian
Hospital has allegedly invited all the doctors involved in Hasmik’s
operation to a conference to ascertain what actually happened.

Suffice it to say that 6 year-old Hasmik Martirosyan entered the
hospital for a 15 minute routine procedure to have her tonsils removed
and wound up with brain ischemia.

Today, little Hasmik is taking an array of drugs and treatments to
reverse the effects of the anesthetic overload that causes lapses
in memory, mood swings, and less than full mobility of her left
side. The girl’s leg has started to curve as a result and she now
hears orthopedic shoes.

Hasmik’s mother notes that while Dalibaldyan, the anesthesiologist,
called to say that he would pay for all the medicines, when she goes
to pick them up she gets a rude welcome.

“The doctor’s wife tells me that they aren’t obliged to look after
my girl till the end of time. But I don’t want that either. What I
do want is that they return my girl to me, with a normal brain and
memory. I want Hasmik back just like she was when I placed her in
their hands. Who is going to answer for what happened to my child.”

SOURCES OF TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY: WITHDRAWAL OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH PROTOCOLS IS A WRONG AND UNSUCCESSFUL STEP

by Tatevik Shahunyan

ARMINFO
Tuesday, February 17, 12:07

Armenia has never demonstrated sincerity in normalization of
Armenian-Turkish relations, Hurriyet has been told by a source in
the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

The source also condemns the Armenian President’s withdrawal of the
Armenian-Turkish protocols on normalization of relations. “This is
a wrong and unsuccessful step”, it said.

To note, on Feb 16 President Serzh Sargsyan addressed a letter to the
President of the RA National Assembly Galust Sahakyan, informing him
about his decision to recall the Armenian-Turkish Protocols from the RA
NA. The Armenian President’s press service quotes Sargsyan as saying,
“It is already six years since the Armenia-Turkey Protocols were
signed. During the entire period, Armenia has always demonstrated
a consistent approach in bringing the protocols to life. However,
we have to state the lack of Turkish authorities’ political will, the
distortion of the letter and spirit of the protocols and the continuous
stimulation of preconditions. Simultaneously, as the 100th anniversary
of the Armenian Genocide approaches, the policy of negationism and
historical revisionism is gaining new momentum. I have spoken many
times about the non-inexhaustibility of time, including from the
podium of the UN General Assembly in September 2014. I repent that
the Turkish leadership failed to listen to Armenia’s exhortation.

Hence, I have made a decision to recall from the National Assembly
of the Republic of Armenia, the Protocol on the Establishment of
Diplomatic Relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic
of Turkey and the Protocol on Development of Relations between the
Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Turkey which were signed on
the 10th of October of 2009 in Zurich.”

NOT ALL BRIDGES BETWEEN RPA-PAP BURNT, BUT ALMOST ALL DAMAGED – ANALYST

14:00 / 17.02.2015

Interesting developments are taking place in the domestic life of
Armenia, political analyst Sergey Minasyan said, referring to the
conflict between the ruling Republican party and PAP.

According to him, after the events in Gyumri, Berdzor, the public
response to them and the February 5 conference of the PAP the
authorities became rather concerned and tried to come up with own
initiative and neutralize the PAP. It is how the unprecedented
aggression of the Republican party is agreed with.

“As a political analyst I cannot say why the PAP activated now. If
they wanted to fight for power it would have been more logical to do
it on the eve of parliamentary elections as it would have given an
important privilege to the party,” he said.

“It is clear that in the situation when two strong political forces
are in open fight the role and significance of the third political
parties be it the ANC or the ARF-D grows. In case of the latter
it is questionable whether it can work with the PAP if more active
cooperation is registered between the PAP and ANC as it is difficult
to see Levon Ter-Petrosyan and ARF-D together just in the way that
it is impossible to imagine Ter-Petrosyan and Robert Kocharyan in the
same side of the barricade,” he said, adding that if in the coming few
days no agreement is reached between the Republican party and the PAP,
we will witness quite interesting political developments.

“I think in the coming days an attempt will be made to settle the
situation through negotiations. I would not say that all the bridges
are burnt but they almost all are damaged” he said.

Nyut.am

AUTHORITIES TRYING TO DISCREDIT GAGIK TSARUKYAN BEING AFRAID OF HIM

13:30 / 17.02.2015

Political figure Gurgen Yeghiazaryan recently stated that he is
going to become Prosperous Armenia party member. Speaking at a news
conference today, Yeghiazaryan declined the information saying that
he is not PAP member and is not going to apply for it.

“I have not written an application, I just wrote it in my Facebook
which was my way to say no to Serzh Sargsyan’s speech. It appears
that first they evaluate the person and then humiliate him,” he said.

Referring to the interview of the Education Minister Armen Ashotyan
where the latter was offending Tsarukyan calling him illiterate,
Yeghiazaryan said, “I imagine if I invite the minister for discussion
of foreign literature what will happen! He will not be able to say a
thing. I can be a very literate person, have a higher education but be
a zero as a person. There is no criteria with which you may decide how
the humanity of the person. For becoming a president a person needs
will and human features. Why do I rate high Gagik Tsarukyan? This
person has everything, he is rich, and knowing with how he is dealing
with he put everything aside and stood beside people. It is obvious
that everything is being done to discredit him as first of all he dared
to oppose and secondly, they are afraid of him,” Yeghiazaryan said.

ARMENIAN MARKET’S INADEQUATE RESPONSE TO GLOBAL MARKET SITUATION: OPINIONS

14:30 * 17.02.15

The business environment is the major reason why Armenia’s market
promptly reacts to world price rises, whereas it does not respond to
price reductions, Chairman of the Informed and Protected Consumer
NGO Babken Pipyoyan told Tert.am as he commented on the decline in
prices for flour.

The price for flour has decreased by AMD 30,000 (about EURO 55)
per ton since January, whereas the bread price has remained unchanged.

The State Commission for Protection of Economic Competition has
confirmed the decline in the flour price to Tert.am. The Commission
is not supervising the bread market because, in contrast to the flour
market, it has no economic entities with dominant market positions.

“Business environment is formed with government and public control
and necessary legal framework. But our government control is poor,
while government support implies the best government control,” Mr
Pipoyan said.

Public sector has no means of control, and NGOs exercise control as
citizens. And such control is most effective not only with citizens’
help, but also by means of social networks. Legal problems are raised
even by people who are not supposed to because it is their duty to
draft relevant bills.

“Therefore, we have the business environment that we actually have.”

Asked about lack of competition with so many economic entities
specializing in baking, Mr Pipoyan said that the bakery and dairy
products markets, as well as other markets, are not properly
controlled.

Speaking of the weight, he pointed out lack of control as well.

Vazgen Safaryan, Chairman of the Union of Native Commodity Producers,
told Tert.am that different groups produce flour and make bread.

“One must establish ties between them to control price fluctuations.

Control over bread makers must be established – price, quality and
weight control.”

The price of flour imported from Russia has declined because of RUB
depreciation as a result of oil prices, and this year has seen bump
grain harvest in Russia. Besides, home-produced flour meets 50%
of Armenia’s demand.

“Home-produced flour is expensive because of high prices for
fertilizers and water. This does not allow us to produce cheap grain.”

The government should elaborate a relevant strategy of domestic grain
production. As regards fertilizers, the government should re-operate
the Vanadzor Khimprom plant to organize home production of nitrogen
fertilizers instead of importing fertilizers from Armenia.

Mr Safaryan points out the need for local grain production for Armenia
to be independent of grain import.

“Cheap grain seems to be imported to Armenia. But the same grain may
rise in price next year. So for food security reasons, we must ensure
at least 75% home production.”

According to sociologist Aharon Adibekyan, the reason for the
unchanging bread price is that bread is made of the more expensive
flour imported earlier.

He also points out the gas price and labor costs.

“We should consider changes,” he said. Despite a double decrease in
the world oil price, we have seen only a 10% decrease in the petrol
price in Armenia.

“If they sell at a low price, the price will fall. Economic
calculations are quite delicate calculations. They are required for
deciding on raising or reducing prices.”

Asked about the Armenian market’s prompt response to price rise,
Mr Adibekyan said the reason is delicate economic calculations as well.

JERUSALEM SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA CONCERT TO COMMEMORATE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CENTENNIAL

14:55, 17 Feb 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

The Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra will hold a special concert on March
5 in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

Titled “With you, Armenia,” the concert at the Henry Crown Hall will
feature works by Komitas (Melodia), Stepan Rostomyan (Symphony No. 4),
Aram Khatchaturian (Ballet Suite from Spartacus), William Weiner
(Melody in memory of the Armenian Genocide and the Jewish Holocaust)
and Beethoven (Symphony No. 3, Eroica).

Andres Mustonen (violin) will be the conductor and soloist of the
concert.

GENOCIDE DE 1915 : UN HISTORIEN TURC ETUDIE LA CONFISCATION DES BIENS ARMENIENS

Publie le : 17-02-2015

Info Collectif VAN – – >
Mehmet Polatel, qui semble marcher courageusement sur les traces de
l’historien turc Taner Akcam, participera au colloque international
sur le genocide des Armeniens qui se deroulera du 25 au 28 mars 2015 en
divers lieux de la capitale francaise. Il interviendra le vendredi 27
a l’EHESS dans le panel qui se tiendra de 10h00 a 12h30 (inscription
dans la limite des places disponibles : [email protected]). Le
Collectif VAN vous invite a lire la traduction d’un article en anglais,
publie sur le site Horizon Weekly le 5 fevrier 2015.

Horizon Weekly

Un historien turc parle de la confiscation des biens armeniens après
le genocide armenien

Le 5 fevrier 2015

Mediamax.am – L’historien turc Mehmet Polatel a presente son etude,
“La saisie des biens armeniens pendant et après le genocide armenien
“, a l’Universite americaine d’Armenie (AUA).

Mehmet Polatel etudie la fin de l’histoire de l’Empire ottoman et les
premières annees de la Republique turque. Il prepare actuellement sa
thèse de doctorat a l’universite de Bogazici.

Voici quelques-unes des idees de Mehmet Polatel :

“Je crois que la confiscation des biens armeniens pendant et
après le genocide est un sujet important a la fois pour les etudes
academiques et en termes de politique. Malgre la politique continue
de destruction, les proprietes et les biens fonciers armeniens sont
les preuves du riche patrimoine et de la culture communautaire des
Armeniens en Turquie. Le sort des biens armeniens et l’etude de leur
confiscation ont une importance de premier plan pour se forger une
idee de l’integralite du genocide armenien et de ses implications”.

“La politique de negation a detruit un certain nombre de documents
prouvant les actes de propriete des Armeniens qui etaient gardes
dans les archives de l’Empire ottoman. Et les archives qui ont ete
conservees ne sont pas ouvertes aux chercheurs “.

“Les biens armeniens confisques ont ete remis aux immigrants [turcs],
a ceux qui etaient rentres de la guerre des Balkans ou aux hommes
d’affaires musulmans, ou ont ete utilises pour les besoins de l’Etat.

Les biens des Armeniens, par exemple, les eglises, les ecoles
et d’autres institutions, ont servi par la suite d’arsenal, de
commissariats de police ou d’hôpitaux “.

“La confiscation des biens des Armeniens a ete realisee a la fois au
niveau etatique et par des individus. Les organismes gouvernementaux,
les autorites locales ainsi que les individus, en particulier, les
voisins des Armeniens, y ont ete impliques”.

(c)Traduction de l’anglais Collectif VAN – 10 fevrier 2015 –

Lire aussi :

Dossier du Collectif VAN : les spoliations des biens des minorites
en Turquie

Agenda – Paris : Colloque international sur le genocide des Armeniens

Source/Lien : Horizon Weekly