ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RECOGNITION ENTERED NEW STAGE
Yerkir
April 21, 2006
The Armenian Genocide recognition process has entered a new
stage. Almost all of the leading states recognized this fact and even
the U.S. doesn’t deny it, National Assembly’s Armenian Revolutionary
faction leader and historian Levon Mkrtchian said in an interview
with the PanArmenian.net.
In his words, Armenia should take the advantage of the international
community’s positive attitude about the Genocide recognition and
pursue a more precise line towards Turkey. “It’s time to speak
of compensations, since without it the fact of recognition loses
sense. For Armenia the matter concerns not only moral and material
side but appears as a security issue as well,” the ARF leader said.
Levon Mkrtchian underscored that is the neighbor state doesn’t
acknowledge the crime committed against a whole nation the opening
of the Armenian-Turkish border and the Nagorno Karabakh conflict
settlement can be protracted for an uncertain term.
At the same time the faction leader remarked that the Arab world
and Iran support Armenia in struggle for the Armenian Genocide
recognition. “Iran has not declared it at the state level but it sides
with Armenia. Actually, the majority of states arrived at a conclusion
that the Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Empire should be recognized,”
Levon Mkrtchian said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

A SMALL OASIS IN THE DESERT
Yerkir
April 21, 2006
An unprecedented exhibition was launched in Kuwait on March 21. It
stirred this country’s cultural life.
The exhibition was organized by the Armenian Gevorgian Gallery
represented by Sergey Gevorgian, the Armenian Center of Young Artists
and its head Khachik Abrahamian, vice-president of the Armenian
Cultural Fund Jacques Hakobian and the Kashatagh Fund for Assistance
to Families with Many Children chaired by Gurgen Melikian.
The exhibition was hosted by the Department for National Culture
of Kuwait.
Works of 18 young Armenian painters were exhibited including Khachik
Abrahamian, Gagik Barseghian, Albert Hakobian, Gagik Ghazanchian,
Hrant Mirzoyan, Lilit Soghomonian and many others.
“It is difficult to organize an exhibition of such large scope,
especially in a foreign country,” vice-president of the Armenian
Cultural Fund Jacques Hakobian says. “However, Gevorgian Gallery
and other organizations supporting this initiative did their best to
organize the exhibition at the highest level so that it would properly
present our country.”
Hundreds of people were visiting the Abdullah Al Salem Center of the
Kuwait Department for National Culture for ten days. Four Arab-language
and five English-language newspapers in Kuwait published articles on
the exhibition highly praising the work of the young Armenian artists.
The Armenian spiritual leader in the Arab countries Koryun Archbishop
Papian said that just like Kuwait is a small oasis in the Arab
desert this exhibition is also a small oasis in Kuwait. The Armenian
organizers of the exhibition extend their gratitude to the director
of the Kuwait Department for National Culture Halem Al Refaye and
the director of Abdullah Al Salem Center Mashaul Al Shalaffa.
“We made some arrangements with them,” chairman of the Armenian Young
Artists’ Center Khachik Abrahamian says. They wanted to organize a
similar exhibition in Yerevan where the works of Arab artists will
be presented. I think arts and culture are good bridges for friendly
relations between our nations.
About 4000 Armenians live in Kuwait and there is only one Armenian
school with 350 students. The Armenian artists visited the school
and met the Armenian children. The artists painted two paintings on
the spot and presented them to the school.
Abrahamian informed that the Armenian artists will present their
works in Moscow, Saint Petersburg and other cities wit the support
of Gevorgian Gallery.

ARMENIAN LEADER SAYS STRUGGLE FOR “GENOCIDE” RECOGNITION TO CONTINUE
Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
24 Apr 06
[Presenter] Armenian people and their friends commemorate genocide
victims on 24 April every year. People in many countries of the world
are paying tribute to the memory of genocide victims. The Armenian
leadership and officials visited Tsitsernakaberd [memorial] today.
President Robert Kocharyan, Prime Minister Andranik Markaryan,
Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II, members of the government
and other officials laid flowers at the monument.
Addressing people, the Armenian president noted that Ottoman Turkey
and its successor are responsible for the Armenian genocide. The
entire subsequent history of the Armenian people who experienced
genocide has carried the dire consequences of this crime.
Robert Kocharyan noted that the pain is even stronger as we have to
struggle for the recognition and condemnation of this black page
in history. The Republic of Armenia, which expresses the national
interests of Armenians scattered all over the world, will continue the
struggle. We are grateful to those countries and organizations that
back us. Awareness gets stronger by the year that this is a task for
entire mankind and the most efficient way to prevent similar crimes
[Kocharyan said].
The struggle of the Armenian people is void of the subtext of
revengefulness. We are looking ahead because strong statehood,
prosperity and progress of Armenia will be our best response to those
who deny the Armenian genocide, Robert Kocharyan noted.
[Video showed the event]

ARMENIAN STUDENT KILLED IN MOSCOW RACE ATTACK
Nick Paton Walsh Moscow
The Guardian – United Kingdom
Apr 24, 2006
An ethnic Armenian teenager was stabbed to death in a metro station
in central Moscow on Saturday night – the latest attack in a growing
wave of racist violence in Russia. At least six immigrants have been
killed so far this month, and many more have been wounded. Media
reports said that a man in black clothing with a shaven head had
stabbed the victim several times at Pushkin Square station, not far
from the Kremlin, before fleeing. Vagan Abramyants, 17, a student,
died on the spot. A friend who was with him at the time was badly
wounded in the attack.

THE ARMENOCIDE
Armen Manvelyan
24.04.2006 11:35
“Radiolur”
Armenocide – this was how the known Arab historian Musa Pren
characterized the tragedy that occurred 90 years ago in the Osman
Empire. By creating the word “genocide” through uniting the Latin-Greek
“race” and “murder” words, Famous Polish attorney Rafael Lemken wanted
to show the whole horror that threatens peoples subject to mass
assassinations, while Pren’s “Armenocide” concretizes and gives an
ethnic characteristic of the matter. At the start of the 20th century
the tragedy that happened in Western Armenia, on the territory of Osman
Empire, changed the fate of a whole nation, and penetrating into the
memory of peoples, it turned into a desire to live and to strive.
The tragedy left a fatal spot, making a whole people suffer a
complex. Such complexes, however, are not cured through short memory
or through the loss of the latter. These are cured to spite the
organizers of the Genocide, due to life, development and victory. To
exclude repetition of similar tragedies it is important to understand
the historic and political motivations of it.
Historic and Political Reasons of the Armenocide
If we speak about the history of the Armenian nation, we can divide
it into two parts – before and after the Genocide. This watershed,
which we call genocide, assassination, Armenian massacres and at
last Armenocide, needs serious study and analysis, particularly from
the point of view of developing security of the second independent
Republic of Armenia.
Turning to the Armenian Genocide – the Armenocide – we should note
that it became possible because of a number of historic events:
it occurred under the conditions of collapse of the Osman Empire,
the World War Two and the strengthening of the idea of creating the
state of Turan. We can state that these events, however, came to
complete the policy the Osman Empire was executing against Armenians
since the day of its creation. Generally, turning to the history of
creation and existence of the Osman Empire, we should mention that it
was some kind of totalitarian Empire. Preceding that or in that period
similar empires were being created not only owing to military power,
but also due to economic and cultural expansion.
Before, the metropolises forming the Empire were superior over the
peoples under their domination in regard to the level of economic,
military and cultural development, which allowed them to actively
influence these people and keep them under their domination. Different
from this, from the above-mentioned economic, military and cultural
factors only the military one was vital in Turkey. That is to say that
being on a lower level of development, the people forming the Empire –
the Turks – could control other peoples of the Empire only with the
military force. Thus, there was no ideological, political, ethnic or
cultural unity within the Empire. It was solely the power of arms that
provided the opportunity to retain the Empire for centuries. Being
on a lower level of economic, cultural and political development than
other peoples of the Empire, Turks could only grab.
This found its expression also in the fact that the nomadic tribe that
penetrated into Small Asia from Central Asia aimed at evading also
these territories to make these a permanent place of their inhabitance.
There were only two ways to do this, either by assimilating the local
nations or by annihilating them. The first one seemed to be a rather
complex problem, since, as it was mentioned, the nations living here –
the Armenians, Greeks, Arabs and Syrians were ahead of dominant Turks
in regard to the level of their development. While the second way was
rather simple and dear to them, considering also that the latter had
great experience of it, since they were keeping the Empire only with
the military force and cruelty. However, if in the period of power
and flourishing of the Osman Empire the idea of having a homeland
was not primary, then in the 19th century it turned essential for
the founders of the collapsing Empire – the Turks. We can say that
this was also one of the peculiarities of this Empire. Other Empires –
the Roman, the Russian or the British – had their original motherland,
a historic land, where they could continue to live after the collapse
of the Empire. The homeland of Turks was Central Asia and Siberia,
where they were not going to return.
Therefore, an own motherland – the metropolis – had to be
created. Small Asia could become such motherland for Turks, since it
had strategic importance both due to its geographical position and
in respect to the possibility of establishing a new Empire in the
future. However, the Armenians, Greeks and Assyrians had been living
here for centuries. And because Armenians occupied the heart of this
territory, they became the primary targets of attack.
We should note that to prevent the collapse of the Osman Empire, in
the 19th century Turks tried to suggest different ideologies, which,
according to them, could unite the peoples of the Empire. The idea of
New Osmanism that emerged in the second half of the 19th century aimed
at uniting the nations of the Empire notwithstanding their religious
or ethnic belongingness. According to ideologists of New Osmanism,
this national ideology could be attractive for other nations of the
Empire and would create the opportunity to prevent the separatist
dispositions of the peoples under Turkish domination. However, from
the very beginning the artificialness and bareness of this ideology
was apparent. Therefore, it could not become the force that would
unite the peoples of the Osman Empire. The idea of Islamism or Pan
Islamism suggested by Abdul Hamid Second did not justify itself,
either. The aim of this ideology was to unite Turks with the Muslim
peoples comprising majority in the Empire, particularly Arabs – the
founders of Islam. However, for Arabs Turkish Sultans could not become
founders of a new Caliphate, therefore the unification on the ground
of Islam did not succeed, either. Different from their predecessors,
these aimed at creating a new Empire, the heart of which had to be the
Small Asia. Different from the collapsing Empire, it had to stretch
to Caucasus, to Central Asia and Siberia, i.e. those territories
where Turkic nations lived. In fact, being deeply nationalistic, this
ideology targeted at returning to own roots and uniting all Turkic
nations. Armenians were standing across this route; they stood between
the Turkic tribes of Small Asia and Caucasus. The latter intended
to lead an active policy of “Turkisation,” and it is not in vain
that after gaining power, the Young Turks, preaching the ideology of
Pan Turkism, prohibited all national unions – the Armenian, Greek,
Arabic ones, etc.
Thus, judging from the above we can conclude that all attempts to
preserve the Osman Empire had failed, so had the policies of Osmanism
and Islamism.
There was no time for implementing the policy of
“Turkisation.” Therefore, Turks had put an aim to create a purely
Turkic state, annihilating all non-Turkic peoples. The largest
Christian nation of the Empire – the Armenians – was hindering the
accomplishment of these programs. Thus, in this period it was already
clear that the destiny of Armenians was predetermined.
The Armenocide and the Islam
We should mention that Armenian and foreign historians have written
much about the Islamic factor in the Armenian Genocide. The opinions
here are unequivocal – although the Turks tried to use the religious
factor to organize the massacre of Armenians, it was not a success. The
people comprising majority in the Osman Empire – the Arabs – did not
back the idea, therefore, it became impossible to escalate large-scale
interreligious clashes. Nevertheless, despite these facts, the idea
dominates among the Armenian society that the Armenian Genocide
occurred just on the religious ground, and that being surrounded with
Muslims, Armenians are doomed. From time to time this idea, having
nothing to do with reality, is being articulated by interior and
exterior political circles to show the fact of lack of alternative
in foreign policy. However, in reality the holy war – the Jihad –
declared by the last Sultan Sehmed Fifth against Christians was
targeted at justifying the brutalities and mass assassination of
Armenians, as well as the involvement of all Muslims in this.
However, the Arab theologians and religious leaders, who enjoyed
great respect in the Muslim world, did not back the idea of Jihad. The
Governor of Hijaz and the Sheriff of Mecca Hussein ibn Ali al-Hashemi,
who was considered the greatest authority in the Muslim word, did
not only refuse to support the Sultan’s decision, but also urged all
Orthodox Muslims to help Armenians and defend them. Many Arab leaders
and the Arab people were assisting the Armenians in the desert of
Der Zor. Arab divisions of the Turkish army were refusing to fight
against Armenians.
The attempts of Turks to use the Arabs to suppress the self-defense
struggle of Armenians failed. Arab Governors of a number of Turkish
provinces were just refusing to execute the orders from Constantinople
to displace and massacre Armenians. However, Turks could not keep from
noting all this, and many Arabs suffered for protecting Armenians. It
is important to mention here that Sultan Mehmed Fifth declared the
holy war against the Christian population of the Empire only after
getting the “blessing” of allied Christian Germany.
Generally, it should be said that at the time when Muslim Arabs
were sacrificing their lives to help Armenians, the Christian Europe
was either supporting Turkey or was pretending not to see the mass
assassinations in Western Armenia.
Generally, turning to the position of European powers, we should
note that on one hand they were using the Armenian Issue to interfere
with the interior affairs of the Empire, thus causing the discontent
of Turkey, on the other hand many times the activeness of Europeans
was preventing or suspending the massacre of Armenians in this or
that Province. Nevertheless, to say that during the war the European
countries were unable to influence the policy of Young Turks would be
incorrect, either. Rather, the factor of political appropriateness
played its decisive role here, i.e. the fact of the massacre of
Armenians would later enable the European powers to present accusations
on Turkey to seize additional concessions from the latter.
Historic lessons of the Armenocide
To exclude reoccurrence of the Armenian Genocide and provide for the
security of the nation it is necessary to seriously investigate the
historic and political reasons of the events.
The study of the policy of the most dreadful crime against humanity
– the genocide – is of great importance not only for contemporary
generations but also for current politicians and for all those who
determine or somehow influence the directions of Armenia’s interior
and foreign policies. It is essential to understand the most crucial
– the fact that contemporary Turkey has been formed in the result of
the Armenian Genocide, the Armenocide. If not the Armenian Genocide,
there would be no Turkey, either. This is the truth, which the former
and current authorities in Ankara understand pretty well, and it
is this fact that explains the denunciation that they demonstrate
towards the fact of Genocide recognition. It can be asserted even
that contemporary Turkey avoids recognition of the Genocide not as
much because of the fear of material or territorial demands, rather
it is concerned with the moral side of the question. Kemal Turkey was
built on the basis of a fault value system, where people carrying the
burden of executing the Genocide were considered divine. In reality the
heroes and famous political figures of this nation resembled a butcher,
whose hands are foul with the blood of millions of innocent people.
Such findings can become the moral blow and loss of faith for the
contemporary Turkish generation, which is not even aware of the events
in the Osman Empire at the start of the 20th century, which can in
its turn lead to the collapse of the country. It is a historic truth
that the flattening of own power and moral characteristics can be
destructive for any state and nation.
It needs to be mentioned that regardless of our will the fact is that
the historic memory of the Armenocide will always endure in the fate of
the Armenian nation, shaping and directing its policy not only toward
neighboring Turkey, but also towards those countries which somehow
contributed to the execution of the Armenian Genocide. At the same
time this memory provides the opportunity to exclude reoccurrence
of the Armenocide in the future and to build the national security
system proceeding from the principle of excluding similar tragedies.

TODAY IS THE 91ST ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
ArmRadio.am
24.04.2006 11:15
Over again thousands of Armenians will attend today Tsitsernakaberd. 91
years have passed from the day, when the Osmans covered the year 1915
of Armenian history with blood. It was a page of our history that
was encrypted in our memory as a tragedy and became a shame and sin
on the conscience of the Turkish people. Today April 24 is not only
the day of commemoration of the 1.5 million of innocent Armenians. It
is the voice of their successors, of our nation to tell the whole
world, particularly those who still suffer hatred towards Armenians
that it is impossible to kill the creating and constructing Armenian
nation. The pain has never broken us. Moreover, after this strong blow
we turned more decisive to prove the nations that have taken the route
of democracy, that we have a place in the 21st century and we still
have much to do, we still have to convince the civilized community
that non-punishment will bring about a new genocide. But before that
we have homage to pay. Let’s once again go to Tsitsernakaberd.

PRESIDENT KOCHARYAN’S ADDRESS ON THE OCCASION OF THE DAY OF COMMEMORATION OF THE GENOCIDE VICTIMS
ArmRadio.am
24.04.2006 13:48
RA president Robert Kocharyan issued an address on the occasion
of the day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide victims. The
address particularly says, “Dear compatriots, today we pay homage to
the victims of the Armenian Genocide. Osman Turkey and its successor
bear full responsibility for this crime.
The whole further history of the Armenian people, which suffered
the Genocide, carried the heavy results of this tragedy. The pain
is even stronger, since we have to struggle for the recognition
and condemnation of this black page of the history. The Republic of
Armenian, as the homeland of Armenians and as the expresser of the
interests of Diaspora Armenians will continue this struggle. We are
grateful to those countries, organizations and individuals that assist
us. The comprehension that this is the problem of the whole mankind
and the most effective way of preventing similar crimes increases
year by year.
The struggle of Armenians has no pretext of revenge. We look forward,
since our best response to denial should be the strong statehood,
the progress and prosperity of Armenia.”

THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY INITIATES A RALLY IN FRONT OF THE TURKISH EMBASSY IN WASHINGTON
ArmRadio.am
24.04.2006 14:05
The Armenian community has initiated a rally in front of the Turkish
Embassy in Washington. Among the participants of the action are members
of the famous “System of a Down” rock group, “Grammy” Prize holder
Serge Tangyan and John Dolmayan, who will call on the Chairman of the
House of Representatives Danis Hastert and other Congressmen to stop
supporting Turkish policy of denying the Armenian Genocide, which
makes the US a companion in the crime carried out by Osman Turkey.
In response to this, Turks and Azeris of the United States promised
to arrange an act of protest. According to the Turkish “Hurriet,”
this year also US President George Bush will avoid using the word
“genocide” in his annual April 24 address.
April 25 musicians of the “System of a Down” will hold meetings with
mass media representatives in Washington. April 26 members of the
group will meet US Congressmen.

THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE MARCH TO TSITSERNAKABERD
ArmRadio.am
24.04.2006 16:00
The way toward the memorial to the Armenian Genocide – Tsitsernakaberd
– was crowded since early morning. The heavy rain in the morning
did not prevent the flow of thousands of people. Representatives of
non-governmental and political organizations, Diaspora Armenians, state
officials, representatives of ethnic minorities living in Armenia,
people in response for foreign Embassies accredited in Armenia come
to pay homage to the Genocide victims.
At 11 p.m. RA president Robert Kocharyan visited the Genocide
memorial. The President was accompanied by Prime Minister Andranik
Margaryan, President of the Constitutional Court Gagik Harutyunyan,
a number of members of the Armenian government and Deputies.
“The achievements in regard to the international recognition of the
Armenian Genocide are apparent,” Vice-Speaker of the National Assembly
Tigran Torosyan told the journalists.
The Vice-Speaker is confident that the most essential is that in
the course of the years more and more countries and peoples come to
understand that the crime was directed against whole humanity.
“It is Turkey’s problem whether it will recognize the Genocide or not,
a matter of dignity of Turkey and the Turkish people.
An interesting action was arranged today by the “American-Armenians –
Armenia” organization: they suggested to tie ribbons on the threads
along the way to Tsitsernakaberd as a sign of protest against those
countries, which have not recognized the historic truth and have not
condemned the first Genocide carried out by Turks.
UU Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Armenia John
Evans refused to answer the journalists’ questions. After laying
flowers to the Genocide memorial he left saying a single sentence,
“God bless you.”
The endless stream of people to Tsitsernakaberd evidences that it is
not just a memorial of sorrow. The procession dedicated to the 91st
anniversary of the Genocide is not just a march of grief. It is a
decisive nationwide demand to restore the justice. Thus, our march
is immortal, since the impulse is fair, the aim is just and the steps
are justified.

MARCH WITH LANTERNS DEDICATED TO THE 91ST ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
ArmRadio.am
24.04.2006 16:35
On the occasion of the 91st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide,
a march with lanterns was organized on April 23 at the initiative of
the Youth Wing of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation and “nikol
Aghbalyan” Students Union.
2500 – 3000 young people, including 300 – 400 Diaspora Armenians
participated in the march that started 8 a.m. yesterday.
The flags of the countries that recognized the Armenian Genocide
were raised in the Square. The participants burnt the red flag of
the Turkish Republic.
Representative of the Armenian Supreme Body of the ARF, Head of the
Standing Committee on External Relations Armen Rustamyan noted in
his speech that the Amenian Genocide is not only an Armenian issue,
it has acquired a universal nature.
“Everyone realizes that if the world does not condemn the genocide,
it cannot be fair,” he noted.
The participants of the rally marched from The “Liberty” Square to
Tsitsernakaberd.