Author: Tatoyan Vazgen

Armenian-Americans March To Remember ‘Genocide’
TheKCRAChannel.com (Channel 3, Sacramento, CA)
April 21, 2005
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — More than 200 Armenian-Americans marched to
the state Capitol Thursday to bring attention to what they called
the 90th anniversary of Armenian genocide.
Fifteen of the marchers walked 215 miles for 20 days from Fresno
to Sacramento.
The marches said they want Turkey to acknowledge the killing of 1.5
million people between 1915 and 1923.
Sen. Jackie Speier, who is Armenian-American, joined in for the last
mile of the march. She is presenting a resolution to commemorate
April 21, 2005, as a day of remembrance.
“The Turkish government has yet to recognize the devastation it caused
on the Armenian people, and we’re all here to remember so it never
happens again,” Speier said.
California claims 300,000 Armenian-American residents, the largest
population in the United States.
;psp=news
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

About 50 French towns to commemorate Armenian Genocide
A1plus
| 16:02:13 | 21-04-2005 | Politics |
Commemoration events will be held in about 50 towns of
France. Liturgies will be chanted, evenings of memory and memorial
attendances will be organized. Representatives of central and local
authorities are also expected to take part in the events.
On April 23 thousands of Parisians will process to the Triumphal Arch
to the monument to the Unknown Soldier. Armenian Ambassador to France
and Jacques Chirac’s representative will light an eternal fire; then
hymns of Armenia and France will sound. Political figures, deputies,
senators, outstanding persons and representatives of the Armenian
community will take part in the commemoration ceremony.
On April 24 Cardinal of Paris Andre Vingt-Trois will chant a liturgy
for the Armenian Genocide victims in Notre-Dame de Paris. A solemn
commemoration ceremony with the participation of officials and
thousands of French citizens will also be held at the monument to
Komitas erected in the center of Paris. After that the procession
will make for the Turkish Embassy.

Armenia wants world community to fairly assess genocide – president
Mediamax news agency
20 Apr 05
Yerevan, 20 April: Armenian President Robert Kocharyan received the
UN secretary-general’s special adviser on genocide, Juan Mendez,
in Yerevan today.
Mendez pointed out that his participation in the Yerevan conference
dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the Armenian genocide testifies to
his desire “to understand and evaluate what happened to the Armenian
people at the beginning of the last century”, the presidential press
service told Mediamax new agency today.
Mendez said that “the historical memory of the nation is a good
assistant in this cause and will give the international community an
opportunity to clarify in full what had happened”.
Kocharyan noted that contemporaries who witnessed the Armenian
genocide did not question its essence and now “the Armenian people
is only refreshing the memory of the international community”.
The Armenian president thanked the UN secretary-general’s special
adviser on genocide for participating in the conference and pointed
out that Yerevan is hoping on the international community in the fair
assessment of the Armenian genocide.

CHURCH CALLS TO REPENTANCE
A1plus
| 13:31:18 | 19-04-2005 | Politics |
Secretary General of the World Church Council Samuel Cobia sent a
letter to Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II with a promise to
mention the Armenian Genocide during the services in all the Churches
of the Council on April 24.
April 6- 10 the Board of Chairs of the Conference of the Churches
of Europe (CCE) summoned a sitting in the Swedish town of Wasteras
to state that the murderous deeds against Armenians must not be
forgotten and that re-consideration of history will open the path to
forgiveness, deliverance of bitter recollections and for the creation
of joint future.
The CCE Chairs support the proposal of the World Church Council to mark
the 24-th of April as the Day of Genocide and take essential steps on
the occasion of the 90-th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. All the
Churched in Europe and beyond its borders can play an important role in
contributing to the reconciliation of nations. Press service of Holy
Echmiadzin reported that the CCE Chairs call the Turkish government
to start a process of reconciliation between the Turkish and Armenian
people with acknowledging the blame and declaration of the truth. In
this view the CCE welcomed the proposal of Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan on opening the Turkish archives. The Armenian
and independent experts should have free access to these documents.
The message says in part, “We call the Turkish government to create
conditions for holding free and just public discussions of the carnages
and exiles of the Armenian people.”
Let us remind that Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan rejected
Turkish Premier’s proposal. «The Genocide is a proved fact while
personally I am a descendant of one of those, who survived it»,
A. Margaryan said
–Boundary_(ID_Ru8QtdFd82zxifz3k5NcPw)–

‘WE ACHIEVED PROGRESS IN MANY ISSUES’
AZG Armenian Daily #070, 20/04/2005
Karabakh issue
Elmar Mamediarov, Azeri foreign minister, stated that “progress has
been achieved in many issues” of the Nagorno Karabakh settlement
process. Mediamax informed that Mamediarov said this in the interview
to BBC after the April 15 meeting with Vartan Oskanian, RA foreign
minister, and the OSCE Minsk group co-chairs. “We have once more
confirmed the Prague process and defined the main directions of the
further work. Principally, progress has been fixed in many issues. But
still there are many issues left that we should continue working
on them. That’s why, we decided to meet once again in Frankfurt on
April 27,” Mamediarov said. In response to the question what are the
acceptable for Baku conditions that would help to mark progress in the
settlement Mamediarov said: “First of all, we demand the liberation of
the seven regions, restoration of communication and normal life for
the people, as well as improvement of demographic situation in the
region. Thus, in case of securing the relevant guarantees, we will
be able to get closer to the long-awaited peace, that the people of
Azerbaijan and I am sure the people of Armenia dreamed about for many
years. That is a very sensitive process but we should take decisions,”
he said. “There is a certain limit for mutual concessions, when we
speak of the concessions concerning the liberation of the occupied
territories. We are the side that lost, our lands are occupied, our
people are exiled from their dwelling places and in this context,
our position is certainly a definite one, the people should return
to their homes,” Mamediarov said.

Armenia invited to TRACECA meeting
Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
April 19 2005
Baku, April 18, AssA-Irada – Armenians have been invited to the fourth
annual meeting of TRACECA to be held in Baku April 21-22.
Deputy Prime Minister Abid Sharifov said that the Azerbaijani
government provided its consent to the invitation, as otherwise the
European Commission funding the project may be discontent over this.*
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian National Committee of America
888 17th St., NW, Suite 904
Washington, DC 20006
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet:
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 18, 2005
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
RECORD NUMBER OF SENATORS CALL ON PRESIDENT BUSH
TO PROPERLY CHARACTERIZE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
— 32 Senators, Led by Senators Corzine and
Ensign, to be Joined by Over 175 Representatives
in Urging the President to Honor his Pledge
WASHINGTON, DC – Earlier today, Senators Jon Corzine (D-NJ) and John
Ensign (R-NV) were joined by thirty of their Senate colleagues in
urging President Bush to reaffirm “the United States record on the
Armenian Genocide” by properly characterizing that crime against
humanity as “genocide” in his annual April 24th statement, reported
the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
This move comes on the eve of the international community’s
commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the centrally planned and
systematically executed massacre of over 1.5 million Armenians.
A similar letter in the U.S. House, signed by more than 175
Representatives, will soon be sent to the White House.
“Armenian Americans – from New Jersey to Nevada and around the nation –
thank Senators Corzine and Ensign for their leadership in securing a
record level of Senate support for the annual letter urging President
Bush to honor his pledge to recognize the Armenian Genocide,” said
Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. “Along with thirty
of their Senate colleagues, they have sent a powerful signal to the
White House that the American government should, once and for all,
end its complicity in Turkey’s shameful campaign to deny its crime
against the Armenian nation.”
In the April 18th letter to President Bush, the Senators noted that,
“The memory of the Armenian Genocide underscores our responsibility to
help convey our cherished tradition of respect for fundamental human
rights and opposition to mass slaughters. It is in the best interests
of our nation and the entire global community to remember the past
and learn from these crimes against humanity to ensure that they are
never repeated.” The Senators continue with a clear request of the
President, stating “We respectfully request that you refer to the mass
slaughter of Armenians as genocide in your commemorative statement.”
Senate support for the letter this year jumped nearly 50% over the
level of support for a similar letter in 2004, which garnered 22
cosigners. House support for a similar initiative also increased this
year, with over 175 Representatives pledged to sign the Congressional
letter to President Bush initiated by Congressional Armenian Caucus
Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe Knollenberg (R-MI). Last year’s
House letter was signed by 169 Representatives.
Senators cosigning the letter to President Bush included: Senate
Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Senate Democratic Whip Richard
Durbin (D-IL), Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
Chairwoman Susan Collins (R-ME), Small Business Committee Chairperson
Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Democrat Joe
Biden (D-DE), Armed Services Committee Ranking Democrat Carl Levin
(D-MI), Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee Ranking
Member Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), Banking Committee Ranking Democrat
Paul Sarbanes (D-MD), Rules Committee Ranking Member Christopher Dodd
(D-CT), Small Business Committee Ranking Democrat John Kerry (D-MA),
Environment and Public Works James Jeffords (I-VT), Health, Education
and Labor Committee Ranking Democrat Edward Kennedy (D-MA), George
Allen (R-VA), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Hillary
Rodham Clinton (D-NY), Norm Coleman (R-MN), Jon Corzine (D-NJ),
Elizabeth Dole (R- NC), John Ensign (R-NV), Russell Feingold (D-WI),
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Tim Johnson (D-SD), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ),
Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Patty Murray (D-WA), Barack Obama (D-IL),
Jack Reed (D-RI), Rick Santorum (R-PA), Charles Schumer (D-NY),
Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and John Sununu (R-NH).
The initiative was led by Senators Corzine and Ensign, who coauthored
the Genocide resolution (S.Res.164) in the 108th Congress, which
marked the 15 anniversary of the U.S. implementation of the Genocide
Convention.
#####

The New Anatolian
April 18 2005
Official Documents Belie the Armenians
The New Anatolian / Ankara
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan sends a letter to Armenian
President Robert Kocharian, officially conveying Turkey’s desire to set
up a commission to investigate the Armenian genocide claims together.
While the Armenians have tried to attract the world’s attention with
their claims of a so-called Armenian genocide for years, official
documents show that between the years 1910 and 1922, Armenian gangs
massacred over half a million Turks in Anatolia.
“We’re facing our history,” said Prime Ministry State Archives General
Director Yusuf Sarinay. “When we face our history, we come across
our own losses and grievances. As we don’t mourn, everyone thinks
that they can get everything easily from Turkey. Within Anatolia,
523,955 Turks were massacred by Armenian gangs. Westerners were
ultimately responsible for much of this. Europe used Armenians as a
tool in Turkey’s politics. Both Armenians and Turks suffered because
of this. Europe should face itself also.”
1915 was the result
Sarinay argued that everyone has focused on a single point in
history, 1915, which relates to the so-called Armenian genocide,
saying, “The problem didn’t begin at that date. Rather, 1915 was the
result.” Sarinay stated that powerful Western states tried to interfere
with the internal affairs of the Ottoman Empire by abusing the Armenian
issue from as far back as 1878. He said that the Ottoman Empire had
put up with the situation patiently until the beginning of World War I.
“The decision to relocate the Armenians wasn’t taken to prevent a
possible revolt or any cooperation with other countries, like the
Armenian diaspora claims, rather it was taken due to prevent a de
facto revolt and cooperation with foreign countries,” he explained.
Sarinay said that the Armenian gangs massacred hundreds of thousands
of Turks in Anatolia. This appallingly large number in many massacres,
gathering several villages together exterminated in one go by Armenian
gangs, are shown by the documents, he argued. Sarinay stated that every
massacre was recorded, and that these records are comprised of letters
and reports prepared by foreign observers and local administrators
of the Istanbul government.
Erdogan sends letter to Kocharian
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to Armenian President
Robert Kocharian, officially conveying Turkey’s message to set up a
commission to study the genocide claims, the Turkish Foreign Ministry
said in a statement over the weekend.
The letter to Kocharian stated that the two countries should
investigate the Armenian genocide claims together. He proposed
the establishment of a joint commission to investigate the Armenian
genocide claims, which he said would serve to bring the two countries
closer in the future.

GENDER STATISTICS IN ARMENIA WILL HELP LIQUIDATING STEREOTYPES IN THE
SPHERE IN COUNTRY: LISE GRANDE
YEREVAN, APRIL 15. ARMINFO. Gender statistics in Armenia will help
liquidating stereotypes in the given sphere in the country. UN
Resident Representative, UNDP Resident Coordinator in Armenia Lise
Grande made this statement at the presentation of a statistical book
“Women and Men of Armenia – 2003” in Yerevan today.
She said that the study of the gender situation in the country would
allow also waging a right policy in solution to the issues originating
in the sphere. Lise Grande pointed out that she had been astonished
with several data of the statistics. In particular, the fact that 3/4
of the employed population in the regions were women, with none of
them taking the post of a governor. Besides, 82-83% of the members of
political parties are men. It testifies that all the political
processes in Armenia are only under leadership of male
representatives, Lise Grande thinks. She was only glad with the
decrease in number of women criminals in 2003, from 2.8% to 2.2%.
It should be noted that the statistical book “Women and Men of Armenia
– 2003 ” was published in Armenian and English by the Armenian
National Statistical Service due to contribution of the Ministry for
Labor and Social Affairs and the financial support of UNDP Yerevan
Office and Swiss International Development Agency.

Zaman, Turkey
April 15 2005

EU Cautious over Turkish Proposal on Armenian Genocide Allegations
By Selcuk Gultasli
Published: Friday 15, 2005
zaman.com
The European Union (EU) has not given a clear response to a Turkish
proposal to re-examine the Armenian genocide allegations in a joint
and independent commission.
Brussels adopted a cautious approach on the proposal and refrained
from describing the step as positive. Emphasizing that the issue is a
historical one and is not included in the Copenhagen Criteria, EU
Commission officials expressed in a statement to Zaman that
clarifying the “tragic events” occurred in 1915 would help to
normalize relations between Turkey and Armenia. The officials
designated that they called on Turkey to build confidence to solve
the issues between Turkey and Armenia and indicated that opening the
border would help reconciliation. Citing that universities,
academics, and intellectuals in Turkey have started a new debate
about the 1915 incidents recently, they underlined that this new
awareness of the issue is important. Noting that Turkey’s proposal is
similar to US calls commission members said that, “this proposal is
an important step to understand the issue,” but avoided a clear
response to the question of whether the step is a positive one.
Co-president of the Turkey -Europe Joint Commission Joost Lagendijk
said that he reacted to Turkey’s initiative with great satisfaction
and added: “As I understand it, the proposal includes an independent
commission consists of Turkish and Armenian historians. This is a
good and positive opportunity that should not be lost”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress