Author: Kanayan Tamar

Turkish Intellectuals Who Have Recognized The Armenian Genocide: Osman Kavala

By MassisPost
Updated: February 28, 2015

By Hambersom Aghbashian

Osman Kavala (born in Paris in 1957), is a prominent Turkish
businessman. After graduating from Robert College in Istanbul he
continued his higher education and graduated from Manchester
University, Department of Economics. After his father’s death in 1980,
he began working as a manager for many business groups. Osman Kavala
is the Chair of the Board of Anadolu Kulture which is a non-profit
company based in Istanbul, and is a member of various business and
social organizations Board of Directors. He is also the sponsor of
many cultural organizations.(1)

In its article `Armenian culture in Turkey, From the ashes’, `The
Economist’ wrote on Aug 24, 2013, `Around 2 million Armenians are
believed to have lived in Turkey before the genocide. Now there are
about 70,000. Survivors are scattered across the Middle East, Europe,
America and Australia. Many more converted to Islam to carry on, but
their numbers remain unknown. Osman Koker, a Turkish historian,
reckons that more than half of Diyarbakir’s population used to be
non-Muslim, mainly Armenian Orthodox, but also Catholic, Syrian
Orthodox and Jewish. `Now’, says Mr Koker, `there is practically
none.'(2)

In a text released with a you tube by EGAM ` European Grassroots
Antiracist Movement, about Osman Kavala’s Impression of the `Remember
24 April1915³, 2014 initiative, EGAM quoted Kavala, Founder of Anadolu
Kültür Foundation-Turkey saying `We are getting closer to the 100th
year, and this is affecting the feelings, making them heavier, of
everyone involved. Having the European Delegation is important, and
shows a bond of solidarity with them and the local organizations in
Turkey.’ It added that European leaders, who are members of DurDe!,
EGAM, and AGBU Europe, helped to facilitate large public
commemorations of the Armenian Genocide, and helped in bringing
together many people affected by it. Everyone involved was there to
show their support and to help work towards stopping the continual
denial of the genocide by the Turkish government.(3)

Ozgun Caglar, wrote an article on October 2014 in Agos, entitled
`Unresolved Trauma Reason for Violence, Suffering’. He mentioned that
Diyarbakir’s Ismail Besikci Foundation hosted a symposium on Oct. 25
titled `1915 Diyarbekir and the Kurds’. Sociologist Osman Kavala, one
of the participants said that `Turkish civil society has to campaign
for the recognition of the Genocide because there is no big Armenian
community in Turkey any more. There is no genocide anymore. But this
issue is not local anymore. It’s an international issue because the
Genocide created the Armenian Diaspora and this Diaspora is working
for the recognition of the Genocide by the parliaments in the
countries where Armenians live. ‘ He added `We are trying to explain
to people that this is an internal issue to be solved in Turkey. We
are trying to explain that we are not working on this issue to
compensate the injustice committed against the Armenian people but to
make Turkey a more civilized and democratic state.'(4)

`Turks, Armenians, foreign delegation commemorate 1915 events’ was
`Todays Zaman’s April 24, 2013 article where it mentioned that
`Turkish Armenians and Turkish civil society groups joined with a
foreign delegation comprising 20 anti-racist and Armenian
representatives from 15 countries to commemorate the 98th anniversary
of the tragic events of 1915 in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Square on
Wednesday.’ It added that many of the protesters think that public
opinion should be changed in such a way that when Turkey recognizes
the 1915 events, there will not be strong opposition to the steps that
will be taken by the government to solve the issue. Osman Kavala, who
attended the commemoration, told Today’s Zaman that public opinion
could be changed through giving objective information to schools and
via media. `Opinion may change in a short time period,’ he added.(5)

In his article entitled ‘ Turks Could Gain More Than Armenians By
Acknowledging the Genocide’, Harut Sassounian Publisher, The
California Courier wrote in Armenian Pundits, `It is noteworthy that
prominent and sensible businessman Osman Kavala wrote in his
`armworkshop’ posting: `It is not possible to dismiss the issue of
compensation so readily. One can find it controversial, unrealistic
[and] harmful to strategic priorities, etc., but it is clear that
unlike `land return,’ it [compensation] will remain an issue to be
discussed in the course of the reconciliation process.'(6)

On May 2, 2011, `Hye Media’ wrote: `A current exhibition of Turkish
photographer Erhan Arik in Istanbul telling about genocide survivors
has moved not only local Armenians, but also many Turks visiting it.
The photographer himself says with his exhibition called `Horovel’ he
has opened for his countrymen a new page of history ` a painful one.
But Erhan says `keeping silence about is a bigger and more dangerous
crime’. The Exhibition was organized in the DEPO hall of the Anadolu
Kultur cultural center, which is an establishment that has advocated
Turkish-Armenian relations and has implemented a number of joint
projects to this effect.The hall’s director Osman Kavala, despite
risks, continues to provide space to Armenian artists and for various
events on Armenian subjects. `We are interested in having such
exhibitions, as we need to create space for dialogue, for discussion
on different issues, such as human rights, social, political issues.
Such an exhibition could not have been organized in Turkey only a few
years ago, but now it is already normal. Unless there are certain
steps by nationalists, everything goes quite well,’ Kavala told
ArmeniaNow.'(7)

””””””””

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DES MILITANTS ARMENIENS TOURNENT LE DOS A DES INTERVENANTS NEGATIONNISTES A L’UNIVERSITE DE TORONTO

CANADA

La Jeunesse armenienne a tenu une manifestation silencieuse lors
d’une conference intitulee

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE: “WE CANNOT FORGET”

The Collegian CSUFresno
Feb 26 2015

Posted by: Megan Ginise Feb 26, 2015

Dr. Sergio La Porta, professor in the armenian studies program,
concluded this years’ Fresno State Talks last night in the Satellite
Student Union, with a lecture on the importance and relevance of the
Armenian Genocide and how it shaped world civilization today.

Entitled “Who Cares? Genocide, Historical Memory, and Moral
Responsibility,” La Porta’s lecture emerged from his own personal
history with Armenian studies as a graduate of Harvard University.

Lucy Garayan, a senior psychology student, joked that although La
Porta’s last name did not end in a “ian” representative of the Armenian
heritage, his expertise and love of the field and the people inspired
his students through his lectures and knowledge to learn more about
the culture.

“At the time, I thought Armenian role in history was minute,” Garayan
said. “Armenia today is the size of Maryland, however, it was in Dr.

La Porta’s class that I learned about a rich and powerful history. I
felt it was my duty to learn about my own culture and history, but
in fact it is the duty of all Armenians to study our history and
language. It is through knowledge that we can keep our traditions
alive.”

La Porta began his lecture with an introduction into the history of
the Armenian Genocide, which began on April 24, 1915, when the Young
Turk regime of the Ottoman Empire arrested 250 Armenian intellectuals
who were soon murdered after their seizure.

In the next four months, La Porta said, the regime murdered 800,000
Armenian citizens of the empire, at a rate of 200,000 people a month,
comparable to the Rwandan Genocide. By 1923, approximately 1.5 million
people had been murdered by the Young Turk forces, and over 500,000
people displaced.

“Now, 100 years later, this crime against humanity, this genocide,
remains unrecognized by the Republic of Turkey,” La Porta said. It’s
historical reality is consistently questioned, not only insulting
the memory of millions of people, but also denying them historical
justice and their inherent human dignity.”

La Porta spoke about local events commemorating the Armenian Genocide,
including the memorial currently being built on campus set to be
revealed on April 23 and coordinated with the Republic of Armenia.

Other local events include the Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee,
a philharmonic concert April 25, the current art exhibit at Fresno
Art Museum, and a town hall meeting on March 16.

La Porta noted the similarity of the Armenian Genocide to that of
the Holocaust during World War II. He explained that there was
a specific organization employed for the mass extermination of
Armenians, legalizing and putting into effect laws which authorized
the deportation of Armenians and seizure of their property-millions
of acres of land and possessions, which La Porta said led to part of
the modern economic basis of Turkey today.

“We realize that this is not a random set of killings, but an organized
attempt to eliminate a portion of the population,” La Porta said.

He spoke of the horrors of the genocide, in which modern technology
such as telegraphs and railways were used. Armenians were transported
in packed cars where they often suffocated to death.

“To add insult to injury they were often forced to buy their ticket
first, then packed into these cars, and often the train would stop
in the desert and have them taken out and murdered,” he said.

To this day, La Porta says, the Armenian Genocide fails to be
recognized by the Republic of Turkey.

“The argument that they make was that many Turks died during World
War I, as if this negates the atrocities that occurred,” La Porta said.

“Yes, a lot of Turks did die in World War I, and a lot of Armenians
died as well. The difference was a lot of Turks died fighting in
World War I, a lot of Armenians died because they were executed.”

But La Porta said that from the destruction, there is still an
opportunity to show a better side of human nature through the
internationalization of the Armenian Genocide. Through American
aid and relief, La Porta called this one of the greatest moments in
american history.

“People often say that’s not that important, nobody remembers it,
nobody knew about it. This is completely untrue. People knew about
the Armenian Genocide very well. The New York Times had over 200
articles on the Armenian Genocide between 1915 and 1922.”

According to La Porta, between 1916 and 1930, The American Committee
for Relief in the Near East (today known as the Near Eastern Relief
Fund) raised 116 million dollars in relief aid for Armenians and
others similarly affected, (equivalent to 1.5. billion dollars today.)
La Porta said that this was the largest relief effort ever launched
in the United States.

The effects of the Armenian Genocide, La Porta said, are still very
alive and present today.

“It destroyed a vital sector of Armenia, also caused the Armenian
diaspora, part of the economic basis for the economy of Turkey, and
allowed the Republic of Turkey to form its modern capital. We see that
this process of nationalism and of purity beginning with the Armenian
Genocide. We can chart its progress in the early 20th century.”

He says that remembrance may be crucial in honoring those that
were lost.

“Never again, Armenians will never again allow themselves to be
executed in the way that happened in 1915. The Armenian Genocide
continues to penetrate current political conflicts in the middle east.”

Amongst many stories of the survivors, La Porta says there is no
debate about the reality of the Armenian genocide, and the reality
of who was responsible.

“The genocide is a historical fact,” La Porta said. “It’s important to
remember that they didn’t just disappear. They didn’t just die. They
were killed by an agent, and that agent was the Ottoman Turkish regime
of the Young Turks. This moral distancing is understandable because
it’s uncomfortable to think that people could do this to one another.

Yet we need to be honest about it. We need to say who did it. We
need to be clear about who did it to overcome the trauma of the
genocide itself.”

La Porta concluded his lecture by demonstrating the power of memory.

“Actually remembering is not stopping us from going forward,” he said.

“It’s the catalyst that allows us to engage in acts of humanity.”

AZERBAIJANI FOREIGN MINISTRY SAYS ELECTIONS IN OCCUPIED KARABAKH ARE ILLEGAL

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 28 2015

27 February 2015 – 2:10pm

The so-called parliamentary elections, planned to be held in the
Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan on May 3, 2015,
are illegal, spokesman for the Azerbaijani foreign ministry Hikmet
Hajiyev said today.

“The holding of the elections is a clear violation of the Constitution
of the Republic of Azerbaijan. These elections are aimed at undermining
the negotiating process on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement,”
Trend cited Hajiyev.

Conscript Died at Military Post

Lragir.am
Country – 28 February 2015, 12:51

On February 27, at 20:40 the conscript Albert Emil Safaryan, 19 was
deadly wounded from a firearm at the military post of one of the
northern military units of the Defense Army.

The press service of the NKR Defense Army informed that investigation
is carried out to find out the details of the incident. The NKR
Ministry of Defense expresses condolences to the family, friends and
fellow servicemen of the killed serviceman.

Armenia defense minister visits military units

16:27, 28.02.2015

The Minister of Defense of Armenia, Seyran Ohanyan, on Saturday paid
working visits to several military units.

At the units Ohanyan followed the course of military service,
inspected the social and living conditions of the servicemen, and
watched their military and physical training exercises.

In one of the subdivisions, he inspected the barracks and followed the
class on social and state preparedness. The minister also got
familiarized with the personnel readiness and the moral and
psychological climate, and asked about the soldiers’ knowledge of
their duties.

Addressing the officers and soldiers, the defense minister urged them
to always carry out their military service consciously and with a
great sense of duty, since the combat-readiness of the armed forces is
formed by the sum of the individual characteristics of each and every
soldier.

Armenia News – NEWS.am

Talk with Ambassador: Gegham Gharibjanyan

14:33, 28.02.2015

Armenian News-NEWS.am agency together with the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of Armenia continues a series of interviews titled “Talk with
Ambassador”. This week our guest is Armenia’s Ambassador to UAE
Gegham Gharibjanyan.

Your Excellency, in which domains will Armenia develop relations with UAE?

UAE recognized Armenia’s independence in 1991, and diplomatic
relations between the states were established on June 25, 1998.

In September 2000, the Armenian Embassy opened in UAE, and in 2008 the
building of Armenian embassy was constructed in Abu Dhabi thanks to
the Armenian benefactors and on the land provided by Sheikh Zayed bin
Sultan Al Nahyan.

Armenia attaches great importance to multilateral relations with the
Gulf states, in particular with the UAE. There have been numerous
mutual visits between Armenia and UAE, and around three dozens of
documents have been signed.

In recent years, there is a trend for development of relations in
trade, economic, and political, scientific and cultural fields.
Activities are underway to expand the legal field of bilateral
relations.

Active bilateral cooperation was formed within international organizations.

There is a huge potential that has not been used, which, through
mutual efforts, will open new horizons for relations between Armenia
and the Emirates. Here, of course, he Armenian Embassy in the UAE has
an important role as well as the newly opened embassy in Yerevan.
Embassy is the first link for communication between representatives of
political, economic and cultural circles.

Armenians have been settling in Arabia since the late Middle Ages.
Please, tell us about our community in the United Arab Emirates.

Back in fifteenth century Armenian merchants were actively involved in
trade between East and West through the Persian Gulf. But the bulk of
the Armenian community began to settle in the United Arab Emirates
after 1975. They were coming from Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Egypt, Iraq,
Armenia, Russia, European countries, USA and Canada. Nowadays,
according to rough estimates, there are 8-10 thousand Armenians in
UAE.

In 1980 an Armenian school “Harut Hovhannisyan” opened in n Sharjah.
National life is governed by the Diocesan Assembly led by the head of
the diocese.

On November 15, 1998 Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I
consecrated the church of St. Gregory the Illuminator in Sharjah. The
church is a part of a complex, including a school and a ballroom.

There is no print media, but there are two websites: emahay.com and
azad-hay.net. Ninety percent of the Armenians living in UAE are
representatives of state agencies and NGOs. They are involved in
construction, engineering and trade.

In 2006 UAE Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, with a special
decree, granted to the Armenian community of Abu Dhabi territory for
the construction of a church and a community center.

On December 2014 the Church of the Holy Martyrs of Abu Dhabi was
consecrated with the participation of Catholicos of the Great House of
Cilicia Aram I.

Arab geographer Ibn Hawqal wrote about uniqueness of Armenian fabric
and carpets back in the tenth century. What can we offer the UAE
consumers and investors today?

Even before establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and
UAE, there were trade and economic ties on the personal initiative of
the entrepreneurs from the two countries.

Armenia exported equipment, copper, aluminum, precious and
semi-precious stones, shoes, artwork, antiques, and imported
electrical equipment, construction materials, food products and
consumer goods.

One of the key programs is a $10 million credit from the Abu Dhabi
Fund for Development for the construction of Arpa-Sevan tunnel, as
well as renovation of Haghartsin Monastery that was funded by Sharjah
emir Sheikh Sultan III bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi.

The embassy is working to hold a meeting of Armenia-UAE
intergovernmental commission.

I think that a joint business forum that was held in Armenia’s
commerce chamber last year played a significant role in deepening of
trade and economic ties.

Given that Abu Dhabi is home to the headquarters of the International
Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the embassy is involved in the
organization of cooperation in the field of renewable energy.

There are cooperation proposals in a number of sectors of bilateral
cooperation, particularly in the chemical, jewelery and diamond
cutting, mining industry. Promising sector is agriculture with several
programs being under discussion. In addition, the sides expressed
interest in further development of cooperation in tourism.

Three air companies – FlyDubai, Air Arabia and Etihad – are operating
direct flights to Yerevan.

Armenia has been also granted ten scholarships in MASDAR university.

Arab community, as a rule, is sympathetic to the historical memory of
Armenians. How will the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide be
marked in the UAE?

Just as in other Armenian communities, the Armenian embassy in UAE
with the active participation of the local Armenians is preparing to
mark centennial of the Armenian Genocide. The Embassy will start
distribution of information materials ahead of April 24.

In 2014, a khachkar was installed in the courtyard of the new Church
of the Holy Martyrs in Abu Dhabi, built in memory of the Armenian
Genocide in Turkey. The khachkar was donated by the family of
Ambassador Gharibjanian. Cross-stone was consecrated by the Catholicos
of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I.

Many events will be held in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, the most
important of which is the evening in memory of the 100th anniversary
of the Armenian Genocide on April 24 in Abu Dhabi, in the hall of the
Armenian Embassy. The event will be followed by a concert with the
participation of Armenian musicians. Funeral liturgy will be held in
Abu Dhabi and in Sharjah.

You have been serving as a diplomat for many years. Your wishes to the
young diplomats, the diplomats who will represent Armenia in the
future.

Believe in the future of your homeland and the state.

Gyumri commemorated victims of Sumgait Pogrom

14:27, 28 February, 2015

GYUMRI, 28 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. Citizens of Gyumri respected the
memory of the victims of the Sumgait Pogrom with an event dedicated to
the 27th anniversary of the Armenian massacres. Among the participants
were representatives of Gyumri Municipality led by Deputy Mayor Ruben
Manoyan.”Even the history of the USSR when friendship between Soviet
republics was propagandized couldn’t discipline the Azerbaijanis. They
proved once again that a tribe can’t become a nation. Most of us
couldn’t even imagine that such genocide could have begun in those
years,” Ruben Manoyan mentioned.

Like every year, the event dedicated to the victims of the Sumgait
Pogrom was also held near the cross-stone sculpted by sculptor from
Gyumri Zaven Koshtoyan. All the participants laid flowers near the
cross-stone to the memory of the victims of the Sumgait Pogrom and
respected the memory of the peaceful Armenian civilians with a moment
of silence. Most of the survivors of the genocide took shelter in
Gyumri in 1988 and shared the fate of the citizens of Gyumri during
the devastating earthquake that struck Spitak in December 1988.

Armenuhi Mkhoyan

Armenian parliament discusses preparations for Armenian Genocide
Centennial Commemoration events

17:20, 27 February, 2015

YEREVAN, 27 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. On February 27, Speaker of the
National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Galust Sahakyan moderated
a consultation devoted to preparations for the events dedicated to the
Centennial of the Armenian Genocide at the Golden Hall of the National
Assembly. Among the participants of the consultation were deputies of
the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia and members of the
staff. As the Department of Public Relations and Mass Media of the
National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia reports to “Armenpress”,
main coordinator of the events dedicated to the Centennial of the
Armenian Genocide, Chief of Staff of the President of the Republic of
Armenia Vigen Sargsyan delivered a speech.

In his speech, Sargsyan presented the goals and objectives and future
actions of the State Commission on Coordination of the events for the
commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the
program and schedule of events to be held in Armenia and abroad, as
well as the parliamentarians’ participation in the implementation of
those events.

James Warlick and ANCA discuss Nagorno-Karabakh conflict regulation

15:21, 28 February, 2015

YEREVAN, 28 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. U.S. Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk
Group James Warlick had a meeting with members of the Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA). As “Armenpress” reports, the
Co-Chair left a comment about this on his Twitter microblog: “Always
happy to talk facts with about a Nagorno-Karabakh settlement. Let’s
continue the discussion about NK peace”,” Warlick mentioned.

Warlick regularly meets with the Armenian American community to
discuss the peaceful regulation of the Karabakh issue. Last April, the
Co-Chair met with the Armenian community in Los Angeles and with the
Azerbaijani community in Houston.