Category: News

New University, CA
April 19 2004
Armenian Genocide:
Affirmation Through Education
by: Taraneh Arhamsadr
Staff Writer

Graphic Illustration By Michelle Le

`Immemorial Muscians,’ a 1997 oil painting by Jacques Aslanian,
conveys a sense of loss among the older generation of Armenians.
Aslanian is known to create art based on his Armenian culture, often
using the topic of exile as a central theme for his work.

Courtesy Of The Armenian Genocide Organization

During the Armenian Genocide, hundreds of thousands of families were
broken. Children were separated from their families and ended up
spending their childhoods in large orphanages.

As inhabitants of a country that allows the free exchange of
knowledge, it is our responsibility to attempt and understand as much
as we can about the world around us. Because of all the negativity
present in our world, some find it easier to shield their eyes from
the pain and suffering, and just go through their daily lives in a
state of ignorant bliss. But it shouldn’t be like this. Upon looking
beyond the high school history books, we find that the most hateful
atrocities passed through time with hardly a whisper. One such
notably horrific event that many know nothing about is the Armenian
genocide – also known as the first holocaust of the 20th century.
Some students believe that a noteworthy cause for the Armenian
genocide in the Ottoman Empire was a rise of nationalism.
Before the late 1800s, Christian Armenians and Muslim Turks lived in
a state of mutual tolerance. But Armenians wished to gain their
independence from the empire, and the fact that the region where they
lived was in between two large Turkish regions – thereby blocking
Turkish domination – made them a much-hated target. For this and many
other reasons, Turkish nationalists began premeditating the perfect
plan to rid their land of these people.
On April 24, 1915, in the early part of World War I, Turkish
nationalists systematically killed hundreds of Armenian community
leaders.
This marked the start of what no one could possibly fathom – the mass
killing of the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire.
Armenian men were drafted into the army believing that they would
contribute to the war effort, but instead were immediately killed or
worked to death.
After the men were removed from the community, the children, women
and elderly complied with commands to relocate. Led across Anatolia
to reach the Syrian Desert, the trip was not without its hardships.
During the `death march,’ many Armenians were raped, starved and
dehydrated, and many died along the way.
Upon reaching the Syrian Desert, whoever remained was immediately
killed.
Those who were able to escape, usually with help from Turkish
missionaries, usually had lost most of their family members. Children
ended up in orphanages without an identity. Women lost their
husbands, families were destroyed. In all, 1.5 million people were
massacred.
While the people of Turkey do not know much about the actions of
their predecessors, the Turkish government has been going out of
their way for decades to affirm that none of this ever happened.
Mark Levine, a professor in the department of history specializing
Middle Eastern history, feels the people of Turkey have not been
given a chance to learn what really happened because of the
government.
`I think it’s mainly the government and everyone involved with it
that’s mainly preaching the denial ideology,’ Levine said. `Though
[the people of Turkey] are more open to talking about it than they
were in the past, they’re never going to learn anything close to the
truth. It’s not going to be an issue that affects their life on a day
to day basis.’
Many Armenians believe that the Turkish government’s efforts only add
to the insult, because they feel that a solution will never be
reached unless governments own up to their past misdeeds.
This week, the Armenian Student Association at UCI is commemorating
and affirming the event. A small but dedicated group, they have
worked tirelessly to make sure that this horrible tragedy is never
forgotten.
`We just want people to know the history. As [Armenian] youth, we’ve
got to continue the story until people accept it and understand it,’
said first-year applied ecology major and ASA committee member Arda
Arjian.
Arjian worked with other ASA members to get the city of Irvine
involved in this event.
`In the city of Irvine, we passed a proclamation about Armenian
genocide, which I wrote. From now, April 24 is going to be a day of
remembrance for Armenian genocide. We don’t want this to be something
that people forget,’ Arjian said.
It is interesting to find a group of young people who have such a
vested interest in their `mother-culture,’ and this may lay in the
fact that this event is still not too far gone.
`I think it’s passed down from fathers and grandfathers, because many
young people have relatives who passed away in the genocide. One of
the biggest reasons that we’re in America to begin with is because
the genocide took place,’ said cultural director of ASA and graduate
student in mechanical and aerospace engineering Vicken Jermakian.
Students of ASA know that they are entitled to learn about anything
they wish as Americans. But they also understand that any society
will attempt to slant their eyes toward certain events while
downplaying others, and it seems that this event is one that is
lesser-known, compared to, for example, the holocaust that
took place against Jews in World War II.
`To me, it’s not about how much publicity we get compared to other
genocides, because I feel that all of them are important,’ Jermakian
said. `It’s been very hard for modern governments to grasp the fact
that genocide is evil. We want the Armenian genocide to be remembered
so as to prevent future genocides from taking place, by educating
people.’
This week, a variety of events will be taking place to commemorate
the holocaust. Armenian students would like to see their peers
participate and attempt to learn more about what happened.
On Wednesday evening, there will be a candlelight vigil at 7 P.M.
That same day, there will be a display of Armenian dancing at the
Student Center.
An important event which students should try and attend is a
screening of Atom Egoyan’s film `Ararat’ on Monday evening at 8 P.M.
in HIB 100.
`This movie depicts some of the minor atrocities of the Armenian
genocide. It will help those who know nothing about the genocide. It
gives people a good stepping stone and an idea of what happened when
everyone turned their backs,’ Arjian said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

The Daily Star, Lebanon
April 20 2004
In the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide
Film depicts a fragile history after tragedy
Information Minister Samaha said more such documentaries should be
made on the history of Lebanon’s various communities
By Nada Raad
Daily Star staff
A documentary on the Armenian community in Lebanon that airs this
Friday evening on the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) will
shed light on the history of their presence here, which, according to
the producer Carmen Labaki, began well before the 1915 Genocide.
The documentary, “Armenians in Lebanon” was filmed in Armenia,
Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon in an attempt to illustrate the Armenian
history and show their “dispersal” following the 1915 Genocide, which
left more than a million dead.
Co-produced by the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International
(LBCI), the 85-minute documentary will be broadcast on LBC on Friday
after the 8 p.m. news report, and one day ahead of the Armenian
Genocide Remembrance Day on April 24.
Labaki, who spent one year working on the film, said that she decided
to shoot the documentary after realizing that Armenian history is
unknown by many here, including some Armenians. Labaki, who
previously produced two documentaries – “Brazil in Lebanon,” released
in 1997, and “France in Lebanon,” released in 2001 – said that the
scene which most touched her concerns the shooting of the Bedouin
Armenians living in the Syrian Desert.
“Every Bedouin Armenian living in Syria has a story to tell about his
parents’ plight,” Labaki said during the documentary’s release on
Monday at the Haigazian University in Beirut. “But the story told by
this second generation does not have the same impact as if it were
told by the generation who lived the genocide,” she added.
The documentary presents Armenian nationals who were uprooted from
their country, their culture and their families and friends, but who
can still list the names of family members. In Syria, many Armenians
are now Muslim Bedouins and have Arab names because they were adopted
by Syrian families.
The documentary shows locations where Armenians were killed and
tortured by the Turks. During the Genocide some were killed in
Armenia while others were killed during a march from Turkey to Syria.
On April 24, 1915, after the Armenians in the army were disarmed and
then killed, the political and intellectual leaders meet the same
fate.
After this event, the remaining Armenians were told they would be
relocated by marching them to concentration camps in the desert
between Jerablus and Deir ez-Zor where they were left without food
and water to starve under the sun.
In a technique common to many documentaries, the producer used
contrasting footage, with scenes of real footage in black and white
abutting contemporary shots of the genocide march.
“We went to Marqadeh in Deir ez-Zor to shoot the documentary. When I
dug in the sand I found bones … from the genocide,” Labaki said.
The documentary was also shot in Shadadeh, an area located in Deir
ez-Zor, where around 300,000 Armenians were put in a cave and burned.
In Syria, many Armenians live in Aleppo, while others left to come to
Lebanon. According to the documentary, the Armenian presence in
Lebanon dates from 1741, when the Armenian Patriarchy was established
in Bzemmar. Following the Genocide, Armenians arrived from Syria and
Turkey in Anjar where some died from cold and illness.
Currently, the Armenian community is concentrated in Bourj Hammoud
and they are well-known for their professionalism in commerce,
jewelry design, carpet making, and crafts.
In 1934, the Armenian community was allowed to vote, and in 1966 some
members assumed ministerial posts.
Currently, the Armenian community is active through three political
parties: the Tashnak Party, the Ramgavar Party, and the Hentchak
Party. In Beirut, four MPs out of the 18 elected members are from the
Armenian community.
The documentary shows that before 1975, members of the Armenian
community here considered themselves as “Armenians living in
Lebanon,” while today they say, “We are Lebanese from an Armenian
origin.” Nonetheless, many members of the Armenian community are
currently returning to their homeland. “Mount Ararat is waiting for
them,” the documentary said.
“We need memory in this country,” Information Minister Michel Samaha
said at the opening. He added that such a documentary should be done
on all the ethnic groups in the country to allow the Lebanese to
learn more about each other.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Tacy Ltd., Israel
April 20 2004
ANGOLAN AMBASSADOR CALLS FOR STRENGHTENED RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA
General Roberto Leal Ramos Monteiro “Ngongo”, Angola’s Ambassador to
Armenia, has called for the strengthening of relations between the
two countries in the areas of economy and commerce at a ceremony
where his credential letters were handed over to the local President
Robert Kotcharian.
The ambassador met with the Deputy Foreign Minister, Fatou Markarian,
the Deputy President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry,
Andranik Aleksayan, and visited the diamond polishing firm Dca, which
is owned by Gagik Abrahamyan.
Monteiro, who is also Ambassador to Azerbadjan, Belorussia, Ukraine,
Moldavia and the Russian Federation, says that the President of
Armenia revealed that Armenia, the ninth global player in diamond
lapidation, is open to initiatives of bilateral cooperation at
company-related level.

The Saratogian, NY
April 20 2004
BALLSTON SPA — The bell rings. The school day is over, but not for
the 22 Ballston Spa Middle schoolers who pile into the school
library.
These energetic and friendly students are members of the Charlotte
Book Award Book Club, the brainchild of three seventh-grade English
teachers: Katie Marcincuk, Jen Hughes and Joe Shaver.

The Charlotte Award is a New York state effort to encourage students
to read outstanding literature and to give them a voice in deciding
which of the nominated books deserve special recognition.
The CBABC in Ballston Spa has been meeting every other week since
Jan. 21, 2004. It was going to disband on April 7, after members
voted and celebrated their own recommendations for the Charlotte
Award. The group, however, has decided to continue.
Today, as the students eagerly greet Marcincuk with comments like:
‘I’m thinking about writing a letter to one of the authors’ and ‘May
I help you set up the snacks?’ I wonder how to bottle and dispense
their enthusiasm to jaded juveniles and apathetic adults.
Not only does the CBABC have school support, it is supported by the
community, as well.
‘The teachers applied and received a grant from the Ballston Spa
Education Foundation,’ says the school’s principal, Helen Stuetzel.
The foundation, comprising Ballston Spa residents, raises money and
provides grants for worthy school projects.
‘We needed the money,’ Stuetzel says, ‘to pay for multiple copies of
the books on the list, so several students could read the books at
one time.’
At this meeting on March 24, the students are gathered to discuss two
books: ‘Forgotten Fire’ by Adam Bagdasarian and ‘The Sisterhood of
the Traveling Pants’ by Ann Brashares. The students have had the
opportunity to read 14 of the 30 nominated books, and they will be
casting ballots for their favorite among these books.
To get things started, Marcincuk, who acts as group moderator, asks:
‘Who read ‘Forgotten Fire?’ Several hands go up at once. ‘Can anyone
give us a brief overview?’
KT Dickman responds with poise: ‘This book tells the story of the
Armenian Holocaust during World War II. A young boy watches as people
in his town and family are taken from their homes to be tortured and
killed. Somehow the boy survives.’
Stacy Machley adds, ‘It was very sad, but also very exciting because
it was true.’
‘And every once in a while,’ offers Taylor Grant-Knight, ‘something
happy would actually happen.’
The general consensus, however, is that ‘Forgotten Fire’ is a hard
book. ‘I tried to read the book a couple of times,’ volunteers
Kristina Mirett. ‘But I just couldn’t get into it.’
Marcincuk sums up: ‘This is a book for mature readers not only
because of the violence but also the story can make the reader feel
very sad.’
Everyone agrees that this is not a book for elementary school
children.
She then introduces the second book for discussion, ‘The Sisterhood
of the Traveling Pants.’
‘We put this book last on the list,’ explains Marcincuk, ‘because it
is long and deals more with mature, contemporary issues than the
other books.’
Alex Ruggiero objects, ‘But the book is so girly.’ Alex is one of six
boys at today’s meeting.
Josh Palumbo concurs: ‘The ‘Rules’ in the book are so stupid. This
must be a humorous or immature book.’
Taylor, also one of the six boys, agrees and disagrees: ‘It took me
days to get through the first four pages, but then shabam! It really
moved.’
Krystal Dee concedes that ‘perhaps the book is more for girls than
for boys.’
I, too, can well imagine how middle school boys might be turned off
by a book that starts with four best girlfriends on a shopping spree.
The book, however, eventually delves into more serious matters such
as divorce and the consequences of sex.
Jessica McDonald says that she ‘can really relate to the character
Carmen.’ Taylor feels the same: ‘I didn’t cry, but I felt sad for
her. She has divorced parents like me.’
Taylor’s assessment of the character named Lena, however, is not so
sympathetic. ‘She was the most boring, and she whined most of the
time.’ But to Taylor, Bridget, the character who is cute and blond,
is another story: ‘I really liked her.’
So did Alex, who admits, ‘I only read the Bridget part of the book.’
Marcincuk looks at the clock and at the table where the cheese puffs,
brownies, cookies, popcorn and soda once stood and knows it’s time to
bring today’s meeting to a close. She and Hughes and Shaver hand out
ballots.
The students make up their minds quickly and stuff their ballots into
the make-shift ballot box.
Before everyone leaves, Marcincuk brings up the idea of continuing
the book group for the rest of the school year. The students are
unanimous in their enthusiasm.
Marcincuk suggests that students bring in books that they
particularly liked. I can hear them suggesting book titles to each
other as they file out.
As I trail out behind them, I reflect on what I’ve just witnessed —
intelligent youngsters engaged in lively yet polite discourse about
books, history, human nature and morality. Though some may have
disagreed with each other, they are willing to listen and even
entertain other points of view. If these children are America’s
future, then I can look forward to it with optimism.
The students who attended the March 24 meeting were Chelsea Ahrens,
Brittany Cain, Leslie Cairns, Brittney Czub, Krystal Dee, KT Dickman,
Stefanie Gentili, Taylor Grant-Knight, Artie Knapp, Kayla Lawrence,
Sarah leBarron, Elizabeth Lincoln, Stacy Machley, Jessica McDonald,
Shannen Menia, Kristina Mirett, Josh Myers, Joshua Palumbo, Chloe
Pecorino, Alex Ruggiero, Mike Venturiello, and Kathy Zink.
Susan Van Raalte’s book club series continues Friday, May 7, on the
cover of the Life section. Thereafter, it will run every other
Friday. If you are in a book club that you would like profiled in
thes series, e-mail Susan Van Raalte at [email protected].

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan
April 20 2004
MINISTERS OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF AZERBAIJAN AND ARMENIA ADOPTED
STATEMENT
[April 20, 2004, 11:03:35]
A meeting between Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar
Mammadyarov and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Vartan
Oskanian took place in Prague, Czech Republic, on April 16.
According to the Foreign Ministry’s press-center, the Ministers
approved a statement for media. The statement says:
`Foreign Minister of Armenia and newly appointed Foreign Minister of
Azerbaijan met April 16, 2004 for the first time in Prague. This
meeting organized by Minsk Group co-chairs allowed the parties to
exchange views on possible ways facilitating the progress. Armenia
and Azerbaijan reaffirmed the interest in settling Nagorno-Garabakh
conflict and expressed consent to continue this dialogue. Foreign
Ministries highly assessed the support of government of Czech
Republic and OSCE’.

Baku Today
April 20 2004
Foreign Ministers To Discuss Nagorno-Karabakh In May
Baku Today 20/04/2004 11:36
The new U.S. co-chair of the OSCE’s Minsk Group, Stephen Mann, said
on Monday that finding a peaceful solution to Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict is in the interests of his government.
“What I will be doing in this position is representing the U.S.
national interests and it is in the American national interest to
work for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue,” Mann told reporters while in Yerevan, according to The
Associated Press.
Having discussed the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenian
diplomats in Yerevan, the U.S. diplomat is due to visit Baku on
Tuesday.
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian said on Monday that he
planned to meet with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Elmar Mammadyarov,
in May.
Oskanian said that the meeting he held last week in Prague with
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Mamedyarov was useful but did not yield
any result.
Azerbaijan’s former autonomous western region of Nagorno-Karabakh is
home for some 100,000 ethnic-Armenians. The region along with seven
of Azerbaijan’s administrative districts was occupied by Armenian
troops in 1991-94 war.
Major military operations between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended in may
1994 after a cease-fire was signed between the two neighbors. But
despite the cease-fire, shooting still breaks out sporadically across
the line separating Azerbaijan from its occupied territories.
The Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe has been unsuccessfully mediating between Armenia and
Azerbaijan since 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict.
The Group is led by a troika of diplomats from the United States,
France and Russia.

Interfax
April 20 2004
Baku, Yerevan want peace process to continue
Baku. (Interfax-Azerbaijan) – Armenia and Azerbaijan are interested
in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the Azerbaijani Foreign
Ministry said on Monday. The foreign ministers of the two nations met
in Prague on April 16.
“This meeting, which was organized by the co-chairmen of the OSCE
Minsk Group, helped the sides exchange opinions on possible ways of
resolving the situation. Armenia and Azerbaijan reiterated their
mutual interest in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and agreed
to continue this useful dialogue,” the press service for the
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported, citing a joint statement
issued by the two foreign ministers.
“The foreign ministers highly appreciate the support from the
government of the Czech Republic and the OSCE,” says the statement.
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov told Interfax before
the Prague meeting that it would not address the new proposals made
by the OSCE Minsk Group.
Mamedyarov stressed that Azerbaijan’s main goal is to resolve the
conflict as soon as possible. He added that Azerbaijan does not see
the option of Nagorno-Karabakh joining Armenia as acceptable.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Interfax
April 20 2004
Yerevan, Baku continue negotiations on Karabakh conflict
Yerevan. (Interfax) – Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian told
a press conference in Yerevan that his meeting with the Azerbaijani
foreign minister in Prague last week “was useful, but the dialogue is
not finished yet.”
He said that Armenia “did not manage to clearly understand the
Azerbaijani side’s final approach to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”
“In the current situation, the only thing I can report about the
meeting is that it was agreed to conduct another meeting of the
Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers in mid-May,” Oskanian
said.
He also said that at the meeting in Prague, the co-chairmen of the
OSCE’s Minsk group did not offer the sides any new ways to settle the
conflict.
Talking about political destabilization in Armenia, Oskanian said
that regrettably, “the internal political situation in Armenia may be
misunderstood by Baku.” This may lead to a change in Azerbaijan’s
position on settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, he said.

Glendale News-Press
LATimes.com
April 20 2004
A day of firsts for school board

Krikorian to become the first Armenian American president of GUSD
board under new rotation.
By Gary Moskowitz, News-Press
NORTHEAST GLENDALE – Greg Krikorian will become president of
Glendale’s school board today, making him the first Armenian American
to hold the position.
Krikorian was elected as a board member in 2001 and is the vice
president. Because the board changes its officers based on a rotation
policy, Krikorian will move into the president’s seat and replace Pam
Ellis during the board meeting.
According to the rotation policy, Ellis, who has been a board member
since 1995, would become a board member and board Clerk Mary Boger
would become the board’s vice president. Board member Lina Harper
would become the board’s clerk. Chuck Sambar would remain a board
member.
However, nothing is set in stone until the final board vote and
approval at Tuesday’s meeting, officials said.
“I am excited,” Krikorian said. “I want to get a good grasp of our
budget challenge, strengthen our district staffing and our programs
to make us the shining light of Southern California, so all parents
would want to move their kids into our city. When we look at these
budget challenges, it’s not just teacher-to-student ratios, but it’s
classified employees, custodians, everyone. We are one big family.
“One thing I’d like to implement this year is to give a State of the
Schools address once a year to give the status of our schools to the
community. I want to strengthen our communications with the
community,” Krikorian said.
The Board of Education had for years decided who its officers would
be based on vague descriptions of a rotation policy that in practice
allowed board members to nominate, vote for and elect its officers,
based on a majority vote in a public meeting.
But that changed in April 2003, when board members voted 3-2 in favor
of writing an official rotation policy into the board’s bylaws.
Boger and Harper voted against the policy, but the board accepted the
rotation policy and other board bylaws in June.
Ellis said that board members, at Tuesday’s meeting, have to readopt
the policy that allows the rotation policy to happen.

Pasadena Star-News, CA
April 20 2004
Armenian genocide designation urged
By Lisa Friedman , Washington Bureau
Armenian Americans from Southern California met Monday in Washington,
D.C., to urge increased foreign assistance for their homeland, better
trade relations and an official U.S. recognition, once and for all,
of the Armenian genocide.
Meeting as part of the Armenian National Assembly’s two- day
conference, members were buoyed by a State Department official who
announced the Bush administration’s support of permanent normal trade
relations with Armenia.
At the same time, members acknowledged that with Turkey on the front
lines of the war on terror, they have little expectation of seeing
the term “Armenian genocide’ in official U.S. statements any time
soon.
“I’m sure President Bush will issue a statement on the anniversary
about ‘those dark days’ or ‘those massacres,” said Osheen Keshishian
of Van Nuys, who publishes the Armenian Observer, an English language
weekly based in Hollywood.
But Keshishian, who also teaches at Glendale Community College, said
despite political realities, the issue remains a burning one for
Armenians in the United States. “The point is, justice has to
prevail. Truth has to prevail.’
Armenian Americans say 1.5 million Armenians were killed in a
genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1923.
Turkish officials say far fewer people died amid a multiparty
conflict.
Tuluy Tanc, the minister-consular at the Turkish embassy in
Washington, D.C., called the term genocide “unfair and untrue.’
“We do not think or believe a genocide occurred in Turkey,’ Tanc
said. “Events in Turkey were, during the course of a world war,
tremendously unhappy. Events took place affecting Armenians, Muslims,
Turks and all components of the Ottoman Empire.’
About 350 people attended the two-day conference also sponsored by
the Armenian General Benevolent Union and the Diocese of the Armenian
Church of America. Several of the attendees traveled from Southern
California, which is home to about 400,000 Armenian Americans, the
largest community in the nation.