BÝA, Turkey
July 11 2006
BIA² Releases 2nd Quarterly Monitoring Report
Monitoring media freedoms and rights in Turkey, BIA² discloses 56
“Freedom of Expression” cases launched against 67 individuals from
April through June as government still seeks to impose new
restrictions. Turkey pays ECHR 332,000 YTL in 1.5 years.
BIA News Center
11/07/2006 Erol ONDEROGLU
BÝA (Istanbul) – “Perihan Magden, Birgul Ozbaris and Gokhan Gencay
face up to 27 years imprisonment in total on charges of ‘discouraging
the public from military service’.
Everyone from journalists to tradespeople collide with freedom of
expression limitations as charges are pressed. While Turkey loses at
European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) freedom of expression cases,
the taxpayer has to pay the compensation collectively”.
The 2006 2nd Quarterly Report prepared by the “Network in Turkey for
Monitoring and Covering Media Freedom and Independent Journalism” –
BIA² Media Monitoring Desk and covering the months of April, May and
June discloses factual details on the situation of the media in
relation to rights and freedoms.
The 12-page BIA² report discloses that 56 new “Freedom of Expression”
have been launched against 67 individuals from April through June as
the government still seeks to impose new restrictions.
Covering the persecution of journalists and writers Nese Duzel,
Sebati Karakurt, Perihan Magden, Hrant Dink, Birgul Ozbaris, Gokhan
Gencay, Abdurrahman Dilipak, Memik Horuz, Evrim Dengiz, Nesrin Yazar,
Rustu Demirkaya, Elif Shafak, Semih Sokmen, Aslý Bicen, Sabri Ejder
Ozic, Murat Belge, Murat Yetkin, Hasip Kaplan, Emine Senlikoglu,
Mehmet Sevket Eygi and Musa Agacik the report stresses that Turkey
has already been made to pay over 332,000 YTL (USD 207.500) in
compensation in only 1.5 years at cases heard by the ECHR.
“While the reforms on the road to European Union membership were
important steps for freedom of expression the Justice and Development
Party (AKP) government has not only ignored the grave consequences
created by the Criminal Code in just a year but has even passed a new
form of the Anti-Terror Law (TMY) knowing it only brought more
sentences at the ECHR in the past and does so today too” says the
report.
BIA²: Government takes freedoms lightly
BIA² Media Monitoring Desk’s report deals with the situation of
journalists, writers and activists persecuted and prosecuted in
Turkey under the headlines “attacks and threats”, “detentions and
arrests “, “trials and initiatives”, “European Court of Human
Rights”, “RTUK applications”, “adjustments and seeking justice” and
“Reaction to censorship”.
The report contains information on 56 court cases launched against 67
people, four journalists seeking their rights at local courts and 15
individuals who have applied to the European Court of Human Rights.
Charges made under Turkish Penal Code (TCK) article 288 (attempting
to influence justice), 301/159 (Insulting Turkishness and state
institutions), 318 (Discouraging the people from military service),
216 (Inciting hatred and enmity) are highlighted in the report
together with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s reply to
criticism of his conduct by filing for damages.
The “Independence” of Justice
The report cites developments over the past three months that reveal
problems with regard to the independence of justice in Turkey.
It notes that while the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors has
no structural or functional autonomy, the fact that the Office of the
Chief of General Staff and the Police force are at top of the list of
institutions filing criminal complaints “creates a concerning picture
for the freedom of media and expression”.
“Covering a wide section of society from journalists to tradespeople
at least 40 people have been put on trial or are still being tried
under article 159 of the old TCK and article 301 of the new Code” it
says.
Anti-Terror Law
The report states that while the consequences of the Penal Code are
so clear the government’s approval of the Anti-Terror Law (TMY) means
“the freedom of media and expression of opinions is taken lightly”.
The TMY that was passed by Parliament on June 29 and is currently the
source of journalist Nese Duzel and Sebati Karakurt’s trial does not
only increase prison terms and extend them to new areas but in
certain conditions also extends the criminal responsibility in
publications from newspaper owners and editor-in-chiefs to
“publication executives” the report warns.
It adds that the law amends previous articles in such way “that
monetary fines are now changed to prison terms and allows the
stopping of publications will also be a serious obstacle in the
debate of issues such as the Kurdish problem and media coverage of
these issues”.
Says the report:
“The case launched against journalist Hrant Dink for his article
series ‘Armenian Identity’ under article 159 turned into an adventure
displaying differences of evaluation between local courts and the
Supreme Court, constituting an important example. As observed in
other “inciting hatred and enmity” cases, the Dink case also damaged
“the feeling of justice” being upheld.
Human rights activists have now tied hoped to President Ahmet Necdet
Sezer’s veto of the TMY which has in the past 1.5 year alone cost
Turkey 332.500 YTL at the European Court of Human Rights”.
10 attacks on media, journalists in prison go up to 4
According to the report, nine journalists and one publishing company
have been attacked in the past three months while two journalists
have been threatened.
In the same period of last year the number of attacks recorded was 7.
Another determination made by the report is that journalists working
for the Kurdish press are frequently being charged with “assisting
the PKK”.
“Isci Koylu” [Workers Peasants] magazine Editor-in-Chief Memik Horuz
was the only journalist “under arrest in prison in the scope of press
freedoms” until the new year but since then Dicle News Agency (DÝHA)
reporters Evrim Dengiz, Nesrin Yazar and Rustu Demirkaya have been
added to the list bringing up the number to 4 in six months.
“Assisting the PKK” cases launched against the three journalists
continues.
“Discouraging military service” a spreading threat
“Ulkede Ozgur Gundem” newspaper reporter Birgul Ozbaris has been
charged seven times in trials related to her news coverage and
interviews on conscientious objection and she faces 21 years
imprisonment if found guilty.
“Birgun” newspaper Sunday Supplementary editor Gokhan Gencay
interviewed conscientious objector Erkan Bolot, “Yeni Aktuel”
magazine writer Perihan Magden wrote an article titled “Conscientious
Objection is a Human Right”. Both journalists face three years
imprisonment each.
With amendments made in the Military justice and trial procedures,
the trial of individuals such as Abdurrahman Dilipak at military
courts will not be possible but civilian courts will be allowed to
attribute to the Military Criminal Code where such trials are heard.
Article 301 puts over 40 on trial
The allegation of “Insulting Turkishness” has last been leveled
against “Father and Bastard” novel author Elif Shafak, Metis
Publishing House chief Semih Sokmen and translatorAsli Bicen.
An investigation on the same charge was also launched against the
Head of the Armenian Apostolic Church Karekin II.
The justice system and security forces continue to show tolerance to
Unity of Jurists group member attorney Kemal Kerincsiz and his
associates who spread violence into court cases.
Radio broadcaster gets 6 months under 301
The Adana 5th Court of First Instance sentenced radio broadcaster
Sabri Ejder Ozic to 6 months imprisonment under article 301 for
“publicly insulting the parliament” despite opinions presented to the
court by the Court of Appeals Public Prosecutor and the court’s own
prosecutor. The court neither deferred the sentence nor turned it
into a monetary fine.
Yetkin faces 4.5 years for criticizing court case
It appears that the allegation of “attempting to influence a fair
trial” that faces journalists every time judicial decisions are
debated, is to continue to be a long-term problem.
Even though the case launched against “Radikal” newspaper writer
Murat Belge for criticizing a court decision banning a conference on
Ottoman Armenians resulted with an acquittal, four writers from
“Radikal” and “Milliyet” newspapers were not fully cleared when the
prosecution appealed against their acquittal.
On top of these, a prosecutor now demands 4.5 years imprisonment for
“Radikal” newspaper writer Murat Yetkin for criticizing the court
case against renown author Orhan Pamuk.
TCK’s article 216 is also leading to different consequences in
judiciary practice. Jurist Hasip Kaplan who expressed his views on
contemporary issues on a television program aired by “Flash TV” was
acquitted in the case where he was charged with “inciting hatred and
enmity”.
However, journalist-writer Emine Senlikoglu was sentenced to 12
months imprisonment for expressing her views on a television program
she attended in Manavgat in the year 2000.
This allegation was also leveled against “Milli Gazete” newspaper
writer Mehmet Sevket Eygi in the past three months.
Following up on the kicking
Journalist Musa Agacik who four years ago was covering Prime Minister
Erdogan during a festival was kicked by the PM’s bodyguard Murat
Oksuz . Star newspaper reporter Agacik could find no one to testify
as witness to the assault but pursued his claim that resulted with an
administrative monetary fine for Oksuz. (EO/II/YE)
* The full report in Turkish can be obtained from Bianet. Please
contact Erol Onderoglu, Tel: 0212 251 1503 Fax: 251 1609 e-mail:
[email protected] for more information.
–Boundary_(ID_E+Rd6Lhe6XN++yOpOkW6J Q)–

Discussion of EP Turkey Report Put Off Until September
Zaman, Turkey
July 11 2006
Published: Tuesday, July 11, 2006
zaman.com
The discussion of a report on Turkey filed by Dutch MEP Camiel Eurling
at the European Parliament foreign relations commission has been put
off until September.
Some 400 amendment proposals, most of them by Greek MPs, have been
submitted regarding the 2006 report on Turkey. The commission is to
discuss the draft report between September 4-7.
The draft report calls on Turkey to open its ports and harbors to
Greek Cypriot traffic. “The recognition of EU members including Greek
Cyprus by Turkey is a compulsory part of the accession process,”
the report states.
Turkey is urged to launch neighborly and diplomatic relations with
Armenia, and also to open its Armenian border, according to the same
draft report.
The border between Turkey and Armenia has remained closed since 1991
following the Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani lands.
Turkey is also expected to accelerate its reforms and conduct fair
trials.
The report condemns the PKK terror organization and calls for the
lowering of the 10-percent electoral threshold for entry of political
parties to the National Assembly.

Iran, Armenia keen to cooperate in health, medical sectors
Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran
July 11 2006
Moscow, July 11, IRNA
Iran-Lankarani-Armenia
Iranian Minister of Health Kamran Baqeri Lankarani on Tuesday conferred
with the Armenian health and energy ministers in Yerevan on cooperation
in various fields.
At the meeting with Armenia’s Health Minister Norayer Davidyan,
the Iranian minister and his Armenian counterpart exchanged views on
cooperation in various domains including health, treatment, medical
equipment as well as exchange of scientific, educational and research
information.
Stressing the significance of strengthening ties in different sectors,
the Armenian minister called for collaboration between the organs
and institutes of the two sides involved in health and medical issues.
In another meeting, Lankarani and Armenian Energy Minister and Head of
Iran-Armenia Economic Commission, Armen Movsisyan, reiterated the need
to expand cooperation in various health, treatment and medical fields.
For his part, Movsisyan urged the need to pursue the bilateral health
and medical ties within the framework of the joint economic commission
and called for implementation of the agreements mutually reached in
medical, health and treatment areas.
Lankarani briefed the Armenian minister on Iran’s potentials and
progress in these fields and declared the country’s readiness for
broadening of collaboration on medicine, medical equipment and
health issue.
Iran’s health minister heading a delegation is currently on a working
visit to the Armenian capital of Yerevan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Farewell to World cup
Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
July 11 2006
On Sunday, the half expected final between France and Italy resulted
with Italy’s victory. The possible outcomes of this world cup is; 1)
the population in Italy will probably increase in 9 months time, 2)
if the babies are boys, most of their name will be Materazzi.
Every world cup is sui generis with its events, organizations and
scandals and this world cup was no different. After Maradona’s hand,
we now have Zidane’s head. (It sounds like pub name: Turk’s Head)
Even Turkish PM and main opposition leader is rumoured to talk about
it. But it was a good kick.
An Armenian reader, privileged me about his quest for the Turkish
origins of Zidane. The argument started in the stadium where he heard
from an Asian guy about Zidane’s Turkish roots. He investigated the
issue and unfortunately wasted his time, like you are doing now, by
reading my articles. Zidane is not Turkish. He also has a brilliant
point about my articles which I agree : “Your website[Turkish
Chilli] reminds me of some girl writing hate joutnals[journal] in
her diary.”. Accurate observation!
First of all, to clear up something, I am not a girl. So do not
propose me. I am a man. The second thing is I will not satire my
reader, whether he is an Armenian or a Martian. I love the way
my readers complain about me, and they have the right to complain
about me because they are wasting their valuable minutes to read my
junkticle(=junk+article).
About Zidane being Turkish, I used to think about it, because of his
name sounds like Zeyneddin, which may be a half Turkish word. But
to relax my readers, I will confess that he can not be Turkish. At
least I used to think so, until I saw his head kick.
In Turkey, whether you like it or not, we have certain norms. Like,
we do not sun bath in our gardens, or open gardens. Also, when we use
blasphemy and if the other party is present, we do not let his belief,
ethnic origin, mum, sister or wife to be in the sentence. If you use
these words, probably not only the other party but his friends, too
will help you getting hospitalized. And a typical Turkish reaction
to such literature may well be like Zidane’s.
On the other hand, Turks have not colonized but rather themselves
integrated in to the regions they lived. In North Africa like Algeria,
there may be lots of people with Turkish descendents. Not only that,
I personally know that around Burdur/Turkey (a village on the north
of Antalya), there are cemeteries of Algerian Turks. Mixing with
Turks or mixing of Turks in other societies is not a big deal.
Turks are the invisible ethnic group, as one researcher from London
claims.
Back to subject, unfortunately like all good things, the world cup has
finished. It was the excuse for men around the world to dominate the
sitting room with their mates; the saving boat of Turkish men like
me to watch something more intellectual (I mean football) at night,
after 8 months of prime time soap opera torture. It was a call for
us to let our hormone levels back to normal manly levels and saying
stop to that female soft power forcing us to prepare salad.
This blessing, the world cup has ended on Sunday. But in this second
day after the final, I began to feel dull and lonely. It was like
being dumped by your girlfriend. It was as if I lost my ability to
irritate Armenians, satire Greek Cypriots and critize French. It was
the only thing to distract me from being a web-mare of all the enemies
of Turks around there. But I am back again! So until the next world
cup, I will do my best to deserve your curses!
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

TREND, Azerbaijan
July 11 2006
There is no framework agreement at peaceful conversations – Russian
co-chairman of OSCE Minsk Group
Source: Trend
Author: E.Huseynov
11.07.2006
There is still no framework agreement at peaceful conversations on
the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, reportedly said Yuri
Merzlyakov, Russian co-chairman of OSCE Minsk Group, in his exclusive
interview to Trend.
Merzlyakov said arbitrators offered the parties to coordinate the
problem settlement principles prior to developing the agreement on
their basis; besides, co-chairmen do not use in conversation process
such terms as “stage-by-stage”, “package”, “universal” and so on.
The further state of the conversation process, Russian diplomat went
on, will get defined after the first visit of Matthew Bryza as US
co-chairman of OSCE Minsk Group to the region.
“At the moment I am just not ready to state the situation. It will
get clear when he comes there and listen to the parties’ opinions”,
he added. Merzlyakov added that Bryza’s visit to the region had been
originally scheduled to later July or early September.
Answering the question about the preparation to the next meeting
between foreign ministers of presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan,
Merzlyakov said: “The co-chairmen’s last statement says the parties
shall put forward their initiative”.

TREND, Azerbaijan
July 11 2006
Armenian FM: Azerbaijan, Armenia do not close positions
Source: Trend
Author: À.Mammadov
11.07.2006
Vardan Oskanyan, Armenian Foreign Minister, said today in Yerevan
Armenia and Azerbaijan today do not lead any consultations to close
positions for settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Answering Mediamax agency questions, Oskanyan suggested the process
might be revived to some extent by the visit of US co-chairman of
OSCE Minsk Group Matthew Bryza to the region.
“I feel difficult to say whether America will put forward any brandnew
initiatives”, minister said.
“We said several times we consider appropriate the conflict settlement
version proposed by arbitrators. This is not an ideal document but
is bears the right balance of mutual compromises”, said Oskanyan.
–Boundary_(ID_LRXb2hr6FrqN42trl0TUlQ)- –

TREND, Azerbaijan
July 11 2006
Armenian Foreign Ministry shall remember OSCE Mission report on
illegal settling occupied Azeri grounds – Azeri Foreign Ministry
Source: Trend
Author: E.Huseynov
11.07.2006
Armenian officials from their Foreign Ministry shall remember OSCE
Mission report on illegal settling occupied Azeri grounds, reportedly
said Tahir Tagizadeh, chief of press and information policy with
Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, commenting Armenian Foreign
Ministry’s reaction to Azerbaijan’s comments on words of expert with
Armenian Caucasus Analytical Center Manvel Sarkisyan that ‘Armenia
and Nagorno-Karabakh implement the program of settling released areas
around Nagorno-Karabkh’.
“As to the results of the work of OSCE mission on revealing the
facts, Armenian side should know the policy it implements to settle
Azeri grounds. Such actions contradict international legislation
norms, including Geneva Convention and its additional protocols, and
like regulatory”, Tagizadeh said.
Tagizadeh outlined that last time he had commented on some tiny
detail, in particular that Armenian experts confirm implementation
and financing such programs from the budget of Republic of Armenia.
“Thus, if our respected colleagues of Armenian Foreign Ministry are
trying to have international community react only to official policy
it is their own problem. But I think it does not make any sense”,
Tagizadeh concluded.

Armenia for Reopening of Russo-Georgian Border Checkpoint
Civil Georgia
July 11 2006
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian stressed on July 11 that
reopening of the Zemo Larsi border crossing point between Russia
and Georgia, would be of vital importance for Armenia, news agency
Novosti-Armeniya reported.
Russia closed down the Zemo Larsi border checkpoint on July 8
citing repair works, but the Georgian side condemned the decision as
politically-motivated, which aims at redirecting movement of persons
and cargo through Roki Pass in breakaway South Ossetia, which Tbilisi
considers as illegal border crossing point as it is beyond the Georgian
side’s control.
Speaking at a news conference, Vardan Oskanian said that the Georgian
side has showed its good will and met the Armenian side’s request to
let 17 Armenian vehicles cross the border via South Ossetia.
“But this can not solve the problem, because the Georgian side made
it clear that this was an exclusive case, which will be unacceptable
[in the future],” Vardan Oskanian said.

Egypt Today, Egypt
July 11 2006
Cairo’s Dimming Ghosts
As the capital’s elegant past sinks further into obscurity,
intellectuals,government agencies – and this historian in particular
– are calling for the restoration and preservation of the city’s most
significant buildings
By Fayza Hassan
DOWNTOWN CAIRO, a khedivial creation of the nineteenth century, has
suffered neglect and steady decay since the 1950s. Elegant hotels,
palaces and villas have given way to shoddy apartment buildings,
ramshackle storefronts and improvised parking garages. The elite fled
to more congenial surroundings in the suburbs, and in a matter of
decades, Cairo’s city center was completely de-gentrified.
Khedive Ismail’s beautiful quarter and all of its architectural
treasures have been abandoned to powers whose least concern was to
respect this particular heritage.
At the turn of the twenty-first century, however, a number of well
known architects and intellectuals sounded the alarm, attempting to
raise public awareness in a bid to save the few buildings that had,
for the time being, escaped the general decay.
One such building is a much-abused palace that stands incongruously
on Champollion Street, a stone’s throw from the Supreme Court, amidst
mechanics’ workshops, popular cafes and commercial apartment
buildings. The walls of what was once its garden are covered in
posters and graffiti. Peeking through the gates, one finds a grim
view of the terminally neglected, dingy architectural treasure: a
palatial stone construction with two wings, featuring tall columns
and a central (now-shattered) bay window. As the sun sets on busy
Champollion Street, the broken glass ominously reflects the sun’s
dying rays, helping the princely abode take on the aura of a rotting,
bat-infested ghost house.
The building, however, was never abandoned – far from it. To know
more about its history one must turn to social historian Samir
Raafat, who describes it in Cairo: The Glory Years.
“To begin with,” writes Raafat, “the architect was Antonio Lasciac,
Egypt’s renowned palace builder [H]is clients included members of the
khedivial family, Cairene notables and trusted institutions. Among
his most visible works are Banque Misr on Mohamed Farid Street and
the palace of Princess Nimet Kamal Al-Din across from the Arab
League.”
The original owner was Prince Said Halim Pasha, a grandson of the
great wali of Egypt, Mohammed Ali. The palace’s decorative motifs
bear testimony in the form of his monogram SH imprinted in the stone.
Prince Halim’s father could have been the ruler of Egypt had Khedive
Ismail not disregarded tradition and coaxed the sultan in Istanbul to
change the rule of primogeniture, thus favoring Ismail’s own son
instead of the oldest male member of the reigning family.
Prince Said was born in Shubra Palace but grew up in Istanbul. It was
the strong Italian tradition of architecture that inspired his
Cairene palace, which was constructed almost exclusively from
Italian-imported materials and decorations.
According to Raafat, Prince Halim’s wife, Amina Indji Toussoun –
herself a great-granddaughter of Mohammed Ali – did not care much for
the palace, preferring to live in Istanbul. As for the prince, he
replaced Mahmoud Shevket Pasha, prime minister of the Ottoman Empire,
who was assassinated in June 1913. It is said that the prince was
manipulated by the Young Turks until they brought the empire to its
eventual demise.
Prince Halim’s star began to dim when Turkey signed its secret treaty
with Germany in 1914, thereby aligning itself against the British
during the First World War. Three months later, Britain, France and
Russia declared war on Germany, and Egypt officially became a British
Protectorate.
In Cairo, Prince Halim’s assets were confiscated, and following
Turkey’s defeat, he was arrested and deported to Malta. An Armenian
terrorist ultimately assassinated him in Rome on December 6, 1921.
The prince never had a chance to live in his Cairene palace.
Galila El-Qadi, an architect with the Institute of Research for
Development (IRD), recounts that the palace was sold in 1918 to
Monsieur Carlsioni, who rented it to the Ministry of National
Education. The palace transformed into a school, Al-Nasra, to be sold
once more in the 1940s to the Societe Chaoul Mediano, at which point
it became El-Nasriya School.
Many Egyptian luminaries received their primary education on these
regal premises; among them were Mustafa and Ali Amin, founders of the
daily Al-Akhbar; Ibrahim Badran, former minister of health; and
Ismail Serageldin, the present director of the Bibliotheca
Alexandrina – to name but a few.
A few years after the school opened its doors, the palace’s gardens
were sold to make room for a new apartment building in front of
Antikhana Street. The reputation of the school did not suffer from
this amputation, however, and it remained one of the two leading
educational establishments (the other being Al-Saidiya School) for
the sons of the Egyptian elite.
The palace only closed its doors in 2004, when El-Fath Company for
Reconstruction & Development bought the premises – just two months
before it was placed on the list of protected historical monuments.
As a part of this important list, El-Qadi suggests, the palace lends
itself perfectly to the transformation into “the historical museum of
the city of Cairo.” Furthermore, it is exceptionally qualified
architecturally for this purpose, endowed as it is with vast rooms,
high ceilings, a majestic staircase and a splendid bay window. The
ceilings are beautifully painted and the facade richly decorated. The
palace is still surrounded by a garden – albeit one much smaller than
the original.
The Supreme Council of Antiquities is the body empowered to make
decisions regarding the restoration and management of the monuments
entrusted to its care, as well as collaborations with technical
institutions and international organizations. The SCA assigned the
task of presenting the pre-project study for the transformation of
the palace into a museum to a consortium including an Egyptian and a
French consultant firm – Mirmar and Bonnamy, respectively – which are
now designated collectively by the name “Mirmar Bonnamy.” They work
in association with the Institute for Research and Development (IRD).
The European Commission and the IRD have financed this preliminary
stage. Since in the long term, the entire project will generate
expenditures of both time and money, the IRD has taken the initiative
to mobilize Egyptian civil society as well as international
organizations.
The IRD plans to target the former pupils of Al-Nasriya School who
today occupy key posts in public and private sectors alike; among
whom are renowned physicians and engineers, famous actors and
successful business leaders. It is hoped that they will form the
Association of the Friends of Said Halim’s Palace and contribute to a
fundraising campaign in support of the project.
A second target will be society itself, which will be the focus of a
campaign for donations to the cause. An additional plan is the
organization of concerts and exhibitions in the palace and its
gardens, with the help of interested professionals and businessmen.
Beyond this particular museum, the IRD hopes to introduce a new
culture in Egypt, encouraging the full participation of civil society
in the preservation and restoration of our heritage. Quite rightly,
El-Qadi comments that without the full commitment of Egyptian
society, the treasures of our past might forever be lost. et
ID=6858

Egypt Today, Egypt
July 11 2006
Sona Zeitlian
Renowned Armenian-Egyptian author Sona Zeitlian examines the
centuries-old relationship between Armenians and their adopted
Egyptian homeland
By David Lee Wilson
UNTIL THE FALL of the Soviet Union and the establishment of the
modern Republic of Armenia, the Armenian people had been without a
homeland for centuries. Between war, migration, deportation and
genocidal massacres, the majority of the native Armenian population
was forced to find settlement away from its homeland.
Egypt took the lead among nations that gave Armenians in exile a
home. Here, Armenians were allowed to retain their cultural identity,
given the opportunity to obtain citizenship and encouraged to
contribute to every aspect of Egyptian society, including its
political and military establishments.
Faces
The Filmmaker
The son of a Jewish father and a Christian mother, this prac…
The relationship between the Armenian diaspora and what became their
adopted home has been put into focus with the publication of
Armenians in Egypt: Contribution of Armenians to Medieval and Modern
Egypt by renowned Armenian-Egyptian author Sona Zeitlian.
Zeitlian, now in her 70s, was born, raised and educated in Egypt. A
teacher in Cairo for many years, she writes passionately about her
ancestors~R contribution to her birth country. Filled with photographs
and illustrations ~W and wonderfully annotated ~W Armenians in Egypt
explores the achievements and accomplishments of artisans, politicos
and pashas of Armenian descent who helped weave the complex tapestry
that is modern Egypt.
While Zeitlian was in Cairo for a series of lectures connected to the
English edition of the book, et sat with her for an exclusive
interview. Excerpts:
Egypt Today: By all accounts you have had a very successful return to
Egypt; how long has it been?
Sona Zeitlian: It was twenty years ago that I was last here.
Unfortunately, that trip was cut short because my home at the time
was in Lebanon and it was a time of civil war. I got the news that my
husband had been kidnapped [he was later killed by his captors and
his corpse found by the side of a Beirut street; no group has ever
claimed responsibility for the slaying] and it was a whole new set of
realities that had confronted me. Thankfully, my feelings then were
completely different from those I~Rm experiencing. [laughs] I~Rm here
to celebrate the Armenian-Egyptian experience, which means so much to
me.
What~Rs the biggest change in Egypt you~Rve noticed since returning?
I made it a point to visit both Islamic Cairo and Coptic Cairo to get
both perspectives of the city, and so much has changed. There~Rs
demographics, obviously: There are so many people and so much
traffic, but those are only the things that you see immediately. On
the other hand, there is much progress on the economic and political
fronts. The Middle East is a turbulent place, and so what attacks one
country will automatically attack the others. The Palestinian problem
has been with us for so long and has affected our destiny in the Arab
world, and we all feel the repercussions of that everywhere that we
go.
The turbulence continues, especially with the situation in Iraq. The
problems really haven~Rt changed. They are problems that have been
with us for decades now and I feel strongly the urge to find justice.
For me it is more urgent than the search for democracy. Of course
democracy is essential, but the feeling from the common people is
that they have to find justice finally.
Unless justice is granted to the people, I don~Rt think that there
will be good grounds to build democracy.
Most Armenians have never been to their ancestral homeland, but they
speak with an incredible passion on the subject. To what would you
credit that?
There are two very important things about Armenian life that make us
so passionate and make us seek the justice that has been denied us.
First there~Rs the genocide. It was covered up; the powerful nations
of the time, for their own political interests, accommodated it. They
would say, ~SIt has to be proven~T and so on. Of course there are many
people who have learned the truth about the genocide, but political
interests prevail.
Statesmen have to take relations between countries and strategic
situations into account ~W and that is understandable ~W but there is
still an urge in us Armenians to find justice. Ninety years have
passed, but we have two things that have sustained us, and the first
is our church. Our church is not an international church. It is a
church only for Armenians, a national church. The destiny of the
church has been tied to that of the people. I mean, the Armenian
church developed in the fifth century. We have had this national
church, and even when we had no kings or nobility, it took care of
the people.
The second thing we have going for us is our high regard for our
culture. We had the alphabet very early on in the fifth century and
this year we celebrate the 1,600th anniversary of the Armenian
alphabet. The culture was nourished by intellectuals all of those
years in the schools. Those schools, both national and private,
fostered this. For instance, in Egypt, we had 30 schools up until the
1960s, when the community started to disperse. We had 30 private and
public ~W when I say public I mean community schools ~W so there was
great emphasis on education.
These important factors stressed our ethnic identity and made us
passionate about what each of us can contribute to the Armenian
people.
The ultimate support of any individual is the family, and they know
that no matter what, they have a safe haven and open arms to receive
them. So family has also sustained us.
Ultimately, my book is about setting the record straight in two ways:
First, it~Rs about everything the Armenians have contributed to Egypt.
Second, it~Rs about everything Egypt has done for the Armenian
immigrants who came here with nothing, but were given the opportunity
to make a life for themselves.
The implementation of justice, it seems to me, is very much dependent
on who your publicist is. How is it that the world believes the
genocides carried out against the Jews of Europe and the aboriginal
people of the Americas, yet the Armenian experience flies below the
radar ~W even though estimates claim anywhere from 650,000 to 1.5
million Armenians were massacred between 1915 and 1918?
You know, that~Rs a very important question. The first act of the
genocide was to wipe out the intellectuals. They were the head to
chop off, so as to make the body unable to defend itself and
ultimately to disappear. It was very well planned from their
perspective and we lost the cream of the Armenian society. Two
generations passed before we were able to regain a foothold.
Even now, we are not very good at public relations. Maybe it is the
residual effect of the genocide: the fear of what might happen if you
raise your head and raise your voice. Maybe. But I think that the
time has come that we should think about other strategies. For
example, in Sohag in Upper Egypt, there is an old Armenian monastery
called the White Monastery. At one time it belonged to the Armenians,
and there are inscriptions that mark the dates when the Armenians
were there and what they had achieved. Later on, as the Islamic
population increased, there was a move of Armenians toward the Delta,
Cairo and so on, and when there were no more Armenians in Sohag, the
monastery passed to the Copts.
It is now an important place of pilgrimage for the Copts. A few years
ago, under the previous ambassador, the previous patriarch, the Copts
said, ~SWe are going to whitewash the walls inside, and if you like,
we can give you permission to remove these inscriptions and take them
to your own churches or do whatever you want.~T
There was a lot of discussion about this, and ultimately the
patriarch of the Armenian Church decided that it was better to keep
our heads down. It is the same state of mind that I was referring to
earlier. Why not say, ~SThank you for returning this to us!~T and take
advantage of the situation?
We didn~Rt do that and we should have.
What was it that enabled the Armenians to weave themselves into
Egyptian culture?
The very early Armenians that came here came to study at the great
institutions, the Alexandria Library and so forth. This was in the
third and fourth centuries, and they came to study at the Hellenic
institutions that had a worldwide reputation. Other Armenians came
for trade opportunities, because there had been long-established
Armenian trade networks on the caravan routes in Anatolia and
Mesopotamia. They also supplied and trained troops ~W you would call
them mercenaries ~W to defend the caravan routes.
There was a third category of Armenians, and those were slaves. When
the amir freed his slaves, those slaves, according to their
abilities, often became generals. The person who led the Fatimid army
and who was the initiator of building a new capital was of Armenian
descent. He was a former slave, a Muslim and also the founder of
Cairo. Surprisingly enough, Al-Azhar University ~W though it was not a
university at the time, but still a place of higher education ~W from
that time until today they still remember his name, Gohar. He was
called, ~SGohar the Sicilian,~T because he was imported as a slave to
Tunisia from Sicily. That was another category, former slaves who had
attained important positions in the Army: in the administrations and
especially as calligraphers or secretaries. If you were a good
calligrapher, you had a position in the administration.
The first Armenian who was instrumental in founding the Holy Armenian
See, the future patriarchate, was also a former slave who was also
the governor of Syria. When the Fatimid dynasty was in poor shape,
this former slave was already known as a very courageous man, so they
asked him to become vizier in Cairo. He made one condition for this;
he said, ~SI will bring my Armenian army with me.~T Because of their
dire straights they replied, ~SWhatever you want, just bring peace to
this country.~T It is estimated that there were 10,000 Armenian
soldiers that accompanied him. This was Badr al-Gamali.
During his time, he never forgot that he was an Armenian. He was a
Muslim, of course, and he was also not only a vizier, or what we
would call a prime minister today; he was also the leader of the army
and the chief of the propaganda apparatus. He monopolized all three
posts, so he was really a dictator if we used the modern term. He was
very good to Armenians, and the time that he was vizier here
corresponds to the time of the fall of the Armenian kingdom in our
native land.
Because of the benevolent attitude towards Armenians in Egypt, many
Armenians came here, and he gave them free housing and encouraged the
establishment of the Holy See.
The acceptance of Armenians in Egypt wasn~Rt the norm, was it?
There was a huge difference in Egypt. Armenians here gave a lot of
money and material help in 1896 and 1915 to the Armenian casualties
and the refugee camps in Syria and so many other places. The Egyptian
government accepted the transfer of so much money out of Egypt for
humanitarian reasons. They could have objected and said that no
Egyptian money could leave the country, but they allowed it. So, we
have much to be grateful for to this country.
One hears of sporadic tensions between Copts and Muslims in Egypt. Is
there a similar tension between Armenians and Muslims?
I wouldn~Rt say that. You know, when the revolution took place, one of
the important slogans was ~SEgypt for Egyptians.~T Now, Armenians were
by this time Egyptian and there was a difference between Armenians
and Greeks or Italians or other foreign minorities in the sense that
there had been special dispensations for foreigners. It was an
Ottoman arrangement that they made to encourage the Europeans to
invest in Egypt. Europeans were free from the regulations and the
laws of the country. They only followed the laws of their own
country, and if anything happened ~W from a misdemeanor to
manslaughter ~W they were judged only in their consulate courts and
not by the government of Egypt.
Armenians did not have this status since they had no independent
country of their own. In fact, there was only an Armenian embassy in
Cairo after the fall of the Soviet Union, when the Armenian Republic
was established just 15 years ago.
I will give you an example. I taught at Kalousdian School in Boulaq.
There was a very rich Armenian who had a monopoly on hammams, or
public baths. He was also very prominent in the maritime trade on the
Nile. He was a very wealthy man, but he had no children, so he gave
all of his money to that school, and it bears his name because of
that. There was a rule that even though you leave your money to a
specific school, the money goes to the Ministry of Education, and it
is the ministry that determines if they will give the money to the
school or not. It depends on their agenda.
Our patriarch wrote the prime minister at the time and said, ~SDo you
want this school to be closed, where so many Armenian children are
being educated, most of them free of charge? Do you want us to lose
this school? If you care for the Armenians, you must do your utmost
for us to retain this school.~T
Mubarak Pasha Baya, a very prominent Armenian who was the prime
minister, found the loopholes to approach the problem through. The
result was that he was able to keep the school for the Armenians and
in court it was registered in the name of the community.
Last year they celebrated their 150th anniversary. So, you see, this
is an example that without having a government or an embassy to
support you, and only thanks to that high official, the rights of the
Armenian people were taken care of.
So is Egypt still an attractive home for Armenians?
The political situation has changed. You know what struck the
Armenian community in Egypt hard was Nasser~Rs nationalization policy.
My father was a tobacco distributor in Old Cairo and one day when he
went to his place of work, it was closed with red tape and he was
told, ~SNow this belongs to the government.~T
They said that maybe if he waited 15 or 20 years, that gradually the
government would return what it took ~W and of course that never
happened. The Armenian community was really a wealthy community, many
involved in both light and heavy industry, and that blow was very
hard. In just one night, you went back to your work and it was no
longer yours.
At the same time there was a welcoming cry from countries like
Australia and Canada. They opened wide their doors and said, ~SIf you
want to leave, we are ready to welcome you.~T If those doors had not
opened as wide or they were not so welcoming, not so many Armenians
would have left ~W I am sure.
Of course much has changed now from the policies of that time, but
it~Rs a shame: One of our foremost filmmakers, Atom Egoyan, was born
in Egypt and his father was a classmate of mine. He was born here,
and when the revolution came he was five years old and his family
immigrated to Canada. Now he is a famous film director and producer,
and if he had stayed here that talent would have gone to Egypt.
Have you been able to get a feel for the current Armenian-Egyptian
experience? And what has been the general reaction to the book in
Egypt thus far?
There were many Armenians who came to me and told me that they did
not know so much about their culture and history in Egypt ~W even
though they have lived here all of their lives. What impressed them
most was that there was an uninterrupted Armenian presence here.
Today, we have a very good ambassador to Egypt, and he has taken good
care of the community. There was an initial printing of the book that
appeared in 2004 and at the time he was newly appointed as ambassador
to Egypt, and one of the friends of my daughter who knew him in
Armenia gave him the book. She thought that it would give him an idea
of the history of Armenians in Egypt.
Apparently, he liked the book, and when we started working on the
expanded English edition, he asked to write the forward and he wanted
to present the book in Cairo where the story began. From what I saw
at the launch party yesterday, it was well received by the Egyptian
dignitaries and the other ambassadors. If you present them facts and
not just speeches, and you accept in all humility what this country
has done for the Armenian community, it will always be well received.
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