Author: Torgomian Varazdat

RWANDA: INSIGHT INTO TUTSI GENOCIDE
Rwembeho Stephen

AllAfrica.com, Washington
New Times (Kigali)
July 16 2007

OPINION
15 July 2007
Posted to the web 16 July 2007

The Genocide week in Rwanda is characterized by a complexity of
issues like elsewhere in the world. This is the time when survivors of
Genocide are filled with fear and desire of both moral and physical
revenge. The perpetrators of Genocide on the other hand, are filled
with shame or desire to do more killings. It is a tense week as we
watch the films and listen to testimonies of all gruesome activities
that were committed against the Tutsis.Scholars on, the other hand,
battle it out asking themselves if it is worth having the memorial week
or not. And the debate goes on the controversy over the naming of the
1994 Genocide in Rwanda. Should it be called "The Rwandan genocide"
or "The genocide that killed many Tutsis and moderate Hutus" or
"The Tutsi Genocide?"

What do all these titles have to do with reconciling people and
vice versa? What actually happened in Rwanda was Tutsi Genocide and
the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda should be therefore, called the "Tutsi
Genocide." Shying away from this fact and the truth is tantamount
to denying the Genocide itself. If we have the Jewish Genocide,
the Herero Genocide, the Armenian Genocide, etc. why do we find it
difficult to have the Tutsi Genocide? Some radicals correctly put
it that it sounds more comfortable to most people to accompany the
Genocide in Rwanda with the killing of moderate Hutus.

Genocide is remembered in all countries where it happened for obvious
reasons. If you bury your father and forget him, you will never have
to tell his grandchildren, and this will ridicule you. We are told
stories by typical events and whether we want or not we shall keep
on experiencing the ills left by the genocide both the survivors
and perpetrators. There are therefore commemorations all over in the
worlds where genocide occurred.

Every year on April 24, people of Armenian descent organize blood
drives, picket Turkish embassies, and celebrate special church services
to commemorate the anniversary of the 1915 arrest of several hundred
prominent Armenians in Constantinople. The arrests were the beginning
of the genocide in which an estimated 1.5 million Armenians were
slaughtered by Ottoman Turks between 1915 and 1923.

However, they find themselves in similar circumstances that Rwanda
faces – of people who do not want to remember. Reasons for fear to
remember remain the same in both cases. This is one utterance reacting
to the yearly commemoration of the Armenian genocide."Genocide is
the most abhorrent and outrageous crime against humanity and we
are not going to prevent it by selectively remembering only some of
its victims."

The Holocaust and Genocide Memorial Day of 27 January is the
anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration and
extermination camp, Auschwitz-Birkenau – seen as a powerful symbol
of the horrors of the Holocaust. Holocaust Memorial Day is about
commemorating all of the communities who suffered as a result of the
Holocaust and Nazi persecution, and demonstrating that the Holocaust
is relevant to everyone in the UK today.

The day provides a focus – through the national and local events and
activities – for people to think about the continuing repercussions
of the Holocaust and more recent genocides on our society.

However, critics claim that the holocaust is too old to be remembered
now as other crimes have overtaken it. "If someone wants to honour the
victims of holocaust, war etc., then they should do so in there own
private way. Similar negative criticism does not spare the holocaust
either. "National memorial" days just drag up the past and do not
necessarily look to the future."

And what do Rwandan critics on the commemoration of the 1994 Tutsi
Genocide say?

Rwandans have mixed reactions with some against, others for and those
who do not care about the Genocide at all.

Whatever the line one takes, the fact is that we cannot afford to live
with hate. People have to be reminded about this. Holocaust Memorial
Day should influence behaviour changes today. We need to put it in
context of all suffering. Everyone should remember in their own way.

Lectures given in the days of commemoration must be able to
contextualize the issue of hatred and genocide in Rwanda.

The Holocaust Memorial Days for example aim to: remember all victims
of the Holocaust and Nazi persecution; reflect upon those affected
by more recent atrocities, in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Kosovo.

Educate about the dangers of anti-Semitism, racism and all forms
of discrimination.

Ultimately, the day aims to restate the continuing need for vigilance
and to motivate people, individually and collectively, to ensure that
the horrendous crimes, racism and victimization committed during the
Holocaust are neither forgotten nor repeated, whether in Europe or
elsewhere in the world.

While teaching about the Tutsi Genocide of 1994 in Rwanda, similar
enlightenments must be brought to surface in all discussions.

Comparative studies and explanations are essential and ignorance
about other world genocides does not provide a clear cut explanation
of the Rwanda.

For example, the massacre of the Armenians in Turkey in 1915-23, the
Holocaust of the Jews in Hitler’s Germany, the mass killing of Tutsis
in Rwanda in 1994, and the ongoing slaughter in the Darfur provinces
of western Sudan today. You don’t just finish people (the Janjaweed)
the way you want when the whole world is watching.

The unfortunate part of it is that very few people have the concern,
the will and ability to take the comparisons down to earth and use them
in the context of Rwanda. Those few, therefore, should come in to help.

Any genocide has it own uniqueness and it is wrong to portray any
genocide as the same as others. This kind of understanding will allow
you to understand why the Holocaust is regarded classically as the
only unique genocide to have happened. But the uniqueness in the
Tutsi Genocide is evident; the speed with which it was carried out
and the relationship between the victims and the killers make it an
extremely unique genocide. So the problem should not be in the degree
of uniqueness but the context.

Remembering is very important in as far as the concept of evil
deterrence is concerned.

It gives us the bench mark of our morality as a society and the
ability to say no to evil. It is one of the steps in the long chain
of procedures to de-poison the Rwandan psyche and psychologically
rehabilitate the dehumanized psyche of the survivors.

The writer is a researcher at K.I.E

U.S. HOUSE MAJORITY PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL
By Aram Vanetsian in Los Angeles

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
July 12 2007

The Armenian community in the United States has secured the backing
of most members of the U.S. House of Representatives for a resolution
that refers to the 1915 mass killings and deportations of Armenians
in Ottoman Turkey as genocide.

In what the two leading Armenian-American lobbying groups consider an
important "milestone," the number of U.S. lawmaker co-sponsoring the
draft legislation reached 219 on Wednesday, significantly boosting
chances for its passage by the 435-member House.

That number includes a member of the U.S. Congress who died recently
and another congressman who has resigned from its lower house. They
are still technically listed as co-sponsors of the resolution.

"We are getting exceedingly closer to our goal of passing the Armenian
Genocide resolution and properly recognizing this historic tragedy,"
Congressman George Radanovich of California, one of the main proponents
of the bill, said in a statement.

"This is a positive development," Bryan Ardouny, executive director
of the Armenian Assembly of America, told RFE/RL from Washington.

"It’s another threshold, another milestone that we’ve reached, and
we’ll keep pushing forward."

Both the Assembly and the Armenian National Committee of America,
which have for decades been campaigning for U.S. recognition of the
genocide, say the mounting congressional support will make it easier
for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to put the resolution to the vote.

A longtime supporter of Armenian issues, Pelosi has reportedly
assured Armenian-American leaders of her continuing support for
genocide recognition. However, she is facing strong pressure from the
White House to prevent the bill from reaching the House floor. The
administration of President George W. Bush has warned that its passage
would deal a serious blow to Washington’s relations with Turkey,
a key U.S. ally.

The proposed resolution, which was introduced last January, calls
on Bush to "ensure that the foreign policy of the United States
reflects appropriate understanding" of the Armenian genocide and to
"accurately characterize the systematic and deliberate annihilation
of 1,500,000 Armenians as genocide."

In his annual April 24 messages to the Armenian-American community,
Bush has described the bloody events of 1915 as one of the greatest
tragedies of the 20th century but stopped short of calling them a
genocide. He has also repeatedly cited a 2002 international study
which concluded that the Armenian massacres meet the internationally
accepted definition of genocide.

Ardouny could not say when the resolution might be brought before
the full House, saying that depends on Pelosi and other leaders of
the chamber’s Democratic majority. "We will continue to encourage
the House leadership to put the resolution to a concluding vote
reaffirming the Armenian genocide," he said.

FROM NOW ON, INFORMATION ABOUT DYNAMICS OF CURRENCY AND SECURITIES ON ARMENIAN STOCK EXCHANGE TO BE ACCESSIBLE FOR MOBILE COMMUNICATION SUBSCRIBERS

Noyan Tapan
Jul 12 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 12, NOYAN TAPAN. The Armenian Stock Exchange and the
Mobbis company of telecommunications sphere have indroduced a service,
which gives the possibility to the mobile communication subscribers of
ArmenTel and VivaCell to receive in the online regime, through SMSs,
information about dynamics, worth of currency and securities on the
Armenian Stock Exchange.

This was reported at the joint press conference of the Armenian Stock
Exchange and the Mobbis company.

It was mentioned that the service operates through the short number
"1500" ( and ).

TOROSIAN EXPLAINS DELAY OF REPUBLICAN PARTY CONGRESS BY TECHNICAL REASONS

ARMENPRESS
Jul 13 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 13, ARMENPRESS: Parliament chairman Tigran Torosian from
the ruling Republican party shrugged off today media speculations
claiming that the party cancelled its extraordinary congress,
originally slated for July 14, because of serious reasons.

Speaking to journalists Torosian said they should not seek something’
mysterious’ behind the party’s decision to postpone the congress
until autumn.

Torosian even cited an old Chinese proverb that says that ‘it’s
difficult to find a black cat in a dark room – especially when the
cat isn’t there!."

The extraordinary congress was supposed to elect party chairman. The
position has been vacant since the surprise death of former prime
minister Andranik Margarian, who was also Republican party chairman
and to nominate its presidential candidate.

Torosian explained the delay by technical reasons.

"THE ISSUE IS BEYOND AMALYAN’S COMPETENCE"

A1+
[08:44 pm] 13 July, 2007

"The Public Commission on Television and Radio (PCTR) regulates the
transmission field and makes it compliant with laws. The PCTR is not
a political body.

It is upon the National Assembly to terminate licensing process,"
"Intenews"NGO Legal Service head David Sadukhchyan told A1+.

"The commission isn’t entitled to set norms, it must apply the existing
norms," said David Sadukhchyan in regard to the PCTR Chairman Grigor
Amalyan’s statement.

To remind, Amalyan had announced that the issue of granting licences to
analogical TV Companies might be reconsidered in view of digitization.

Sandukhchyan said that the programme of digitization is still
under consideration. A number of organisations have come up with
proposals. One of them proposed transmission of two and more TV
stations via one channel, i.e. both anological and digital TV Companies
should be broadcast simultaneously.

"Termination of anological licencing implies great changes to the
laws. Under the law licencing tenders must be announced at least once
a year," he said.

It is due to mention that the commission hasn’t held tenders since 2004
because of the absence of free frequencies. Neither did it announce
tenders for radio frequencies though according to the commission
there are six free radio frequencies

"If I were Amalyan I would tell people that the question is beyond
my competence and send them to relevant bodies."

"ELIMINATION OF RESULTS OF TERRORISM IS MORE PRODUCTIVE THAN THAT OF ITS INITIAL CAUSES," NATO’S OFFICIAL SAYS

Noyan Tapan
Jul 12 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 12, NOYAN TAPAN. The Foreign Policy of Armenia is led
by the principle of intersuppliment and is building a complex system
for security provision in conformity with current challenges. This
statement was made by Arman Kirakosian, the RA Deputy Minister of
Foreign Affairs, during the working meeting of NATO and the General
Council of the European Security titled "Provision of readiness for
struggling against terrorism", which was held on July 12. According to
the Deputy Minister, the cooperation with NATO is one of the important
elements of the security policy of Armenia and the cooperation with
regard to the struggle carried out against terrorism is a component
part of the above-mentioned cooperation." Taking into consideration
its geographical location and realizing the degree of the threat of
international terrorism, as well as the importance of international
cooperation directed at the struggle against it, Armenia joined NATO’s
"Program of Partnership Activities against Terrorism" document,"
A. Kirakosian mentioned.

According to George Katsirdakis, the Senior Officer of NATO’s Defence
Partnership and Cooperation, Defence Security and Planning Division,
the issue of international terrorism appeared in the center of
attention of society after the great terrorist act committed in
the United States on September 11, in particular. He believes that
this very incident became the cause for international instituitons
to conduct a better organized and consistent struggle against
terrorism. George Katsirdakis added that currently the elimination of
the results of terrorism is more productive, than that of its initial
causes, as too much time is necessary in order to reveal these initial
causes. This circumstance, according to him, has been taken into
account when developing the anti-terrorism strategic program of NATO.

OPENING CEREMONY OF KAZAKH EMBASSY TO TAKE PLACE IN YEREVAN ON JULY 12

Noyan Tapan
Jul 12 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 12, NOYAN TAPAN. The Embassy of the Republic of
Kazakhstan in Armenia will open in Yerevan on July 12. During the
meeting with Ayimdos Bozjigitov, the Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Armenia, which took
place the day before, Serge Sargsian, the RA Prime Minister, expressed
hope that the active work of the diplomatic representations of the two
countries will contribute to a better strengthening of the relations
between Armenia and Kazakhstan.

Ayimdos Bozjigitov mentioned in his turn that there are
great possibilities of cooperation, as well as interesting and
mutually benefitial drafts, concerning which he has already had
discussions also with the co-Chairman of the Armenian side of the
intergovernmental commission of the economic cooperation between
Armenia and Kazakhstan. The Ambassador also mentioned that the
Armenian community of Kazakhstan as well, which is composed of about
25 thousand Armenians, is a considerable potential in the strengthening
of Armenian-Kazakh relations and development of interactivities.

According to the information provided to Noyan Tapan by the
Information and Public Relations’ Department of the RA Government,
the interlocutors attached importance to the cooperation between the
Republics of Armenia and Kazakhstan within the frameworks of different
international organizations during the meeting.

GOLDEN MEDAL OF "GOLDEN APRICOT" TO THE DIRECTOR OF "VIVACELL"
By Mariet Makarian

AZG Armenian Daily
12/07/2007

Many guests were present at a press-cocktail meeting organized in
the summer park of Yerevan Hotel on June 10.

RA Minister of Culture Hasmik Poghosian welcomed the guests saying,
"The success of the festival is not only the success of the state
but also all the Armenian people. It was realized with the help of
those sponsors who stood by the side of the state."

The Minister thanked the General sponsor of "Golden apricot" "Vivacell"
Co. for its charities in the sphere of culture.

Ms. Poghosian awarded the director of "Vivacell" with a golden medal –
the supreme award of the Ministry of Culture.

The Director of "Vivacell" Ralf Yerikian thanked for the award saying,
"If we believe in our culture, we should believe that it’ll be stronger
day by day, as culture has a very important role in our future and
for our Armenia".

ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: WE WILL NOT ALLOW TURKEY AND AZERBAIJAN DICTATE THEIR CONDITIONS TO US

arminfo
2007-07-10 15:26:00

Armenian foreign minister Vardan Oskanyan said when making a speech
at the first ArmTech CONGRESS ’07 San Francisco, USA July 7, 2007.

As ArmInfo was informed from press-service of Foreign Ministry,
Vardan Oskanyan said that Armenia will not allow an unrepentant
Turkey to determine our agenda. "We will also not limit our choices
and options by the lack of a willingness on the part of Azerbaijan
to enter into a lasting agreement.

They do not want to acknowledge either the past, or the present. As
a result, they are not interested in discussing a common future",
the minister added.

Oskanyan also said: "The mental state of war persists in Azerbaijan. In
Armenia and Karabakh, I am proud to say that OUR outlook is towards
the future, towards an eventual peace, towards progress, stability
and prosperity".

ETYGEN MAHCUPYAN, THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMENIAN-TURKISH WEEKLY AGOS, SPOKE TO DER SPIEGEL ABOUT THE TRIAL OF THE ALLEGED KILLERS OF HIS PREDECESSOR HRANT DINK.
Interview conducted by Annette Grossbongardt

DER SPIEGEL
10 July 07

Etyen Mahcupyan replaced murdered journalist Hrant Dink as
editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos.

The Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was gunned down on Jan. 19
this year. Now, six months later, the trial of his alleged killer and
17 other suspects has started. The trial is being carried out behind
closed doors because the accused gunman, Ogun Samast, is a minor.

Dink was hated by ultranationalists for describing the mass killing
of Armenians in the early part of the 20th century as genocide. He was
prosecuted for his comments under Article 301 of Turkey’s penal code,
which bans insults to Turkish identity.

Critics have accused the authorities of failing to act on reports of a
plot to kill Dink. Two of the suspects, Yasin Hayal and Erhan Tuncel,
even claim they were working for the security forces. The current
case is seen as an important test of whether the Turkish judiciary
is capable of investigating claims of official negligence.

DER SPIEGEL spoke to Etyen Mahcupyan, Dink’s successor as
editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos about the trial.

SPIEGEL: The trial against Dink’s alleged 17-year-old murderer and
his accomplices has started. But now the investigation is to be
continued. Were there other people involved?

Etyen Mahcupyan: This type of attack must have been prepared by a
bigger network than just the gang that is currently on trial. There
had to be political connections, people who pulled strings, paid
money or laid the ideological groundwork. So far only two members of
the nationalist Great Unity Party (BBP) have been charged.

SPIEGEL: One of the accused claims that they were controlled by a
group within the police force.

Mahcupyan: A number of police officers knew what was going to
happen. But they didn’t prevent the murder. Were they acting of their
own accord, or did someone give them orders? That is unclear.

People demonstrate near the court in Istanbul where the Dink murder
trial is being held.

SPIEGEL: What was the perpetrator’s motive?

Mahcupyan: There is a link here between ultra-nationalism and criminal
gangs. The aim was probably to cause unrest in the election year
with the intention of torpedoing Turkey’s chances of joining the
European Union.

Presumably a whole series of attacks was planned, but the public
reaction was too strong to go ahead with them.

SPIEGEL: In general, politically motivated crimes are seldom solved
in Turkey. Will it be different this time?

Mahcupyan: In the past the judges were usually afraid to take
risks. None of them wanted to expose the links between the military,
the government and the judiciary. But in this case there is the
potential to really get to the bottom of things. The judges are
flexible and are working with the lawyers.

SPIEGEL: You are Dink’s successor as editor-in-chief at Agos. Are
you and your colleagues still being threatened?

Mahcupyan: Yes, but that is the usual hatred that we have to face. The
Armenian community and their patriarch often receive threats from
the nationalists as well.

SPIEGEL: Dink was pulled up before judges on several occasions because
of his articles. Have you also been hampered in your work?

Mahcupyan: Not at the moment, but if it were politically desired then
someone could find an old article and file charges. I have already
been put on trial for allegedly insulting state institutions.