Genocide Conference in Turkey
OK, it wasn't exactly called that, but folks, this last weekend saw the first conference in Turkey on the issue of the massacres of the Armenians during WWI. It is huge. After 90 years, Turks have defied two government attempts to block the event, and have openly, but quietly discussed what happened. Most if not all of the scholars must clearly know the truth of what happened. That the conference was held with riot police keeping back protesters, that 3 universities had agreed to host it, that the EU was pushing for free speech, that the Prime Minister was saying it must be allowed, that the Justice Minister who in May stopped the whole thing by saying the participants are traitors has turned around this time and said there was no reason it couldn't be held at a 3rd university are all big news.
This was a huge weekend on this issue - another massive hurdle has been overcome. These scholars stuck their necks out even as Orhan Pamuk is being tried for saying over 1,000,000 Armenians were killed... not even calling it genocide. This is Turkey changing and Turks leading the call. All the Armenian research, books, documents, lobbying, etc have contributed to it... the truth is out there waiting for a free democratic Turkey to simply recognize it...
This was a huge weekend on this issue - another massive hurdle has been overcome. These scholars stuck their necks out even as Orhan Pamuk is being tried for saying over 1,000,000 Armenians were killed... not even calling it genocide. This is Turkey changing and Turks leading the call. All the Armenian research, books, documents, lobbying, etc have contributed to it... the truth is out there waiting for a free democratic Turkey to simply recognize it...
posted by Raffi K. at 3:35 PM
16 Comments:
I can't recall Turkish President Sezer saying anything about this conference, but the Foreign and Prime Ministers are "acting" like righteous politicians working towards building a democratic European state ... what a joke. What have they achieved since the EU approved talks for this October? All talk.
Let's wait to get updates about the conference.
Check out this dimwit ... http://www.tdn.com.tr/photo/92005/m24369.jpg
Pray tell what on earth is he trying to do? I sooooo wish I were a Turkish speaking fly on the wall for this conference.
Der Hova - Even if it is all talk from the politicians, it is still just a new page in history. It doesn't change the rest of the facts, or even the fact that they are now forced to talk the right talk :-)
And if you're looking at the Turkish Daily News, check out: http://www.tdn.com.tr/editorial.php?ed=elif_safak - another example of the sort of thing we wouldn't have seen before. There are other examples too...
(you were right about President, I meant - and changed my log to say - Prime Minister)
An interesting quote:
"What's been very interesting in recent months has been a gradual
revisionism in the newspapers," Hugh Pope, the author of a recent
book on the Turkic world, "Sons of the Conquerors," who has lived in
Turkey for 18 years, told RFE/RL. "For instance, one of the
nationalist newspapers, 'Hurriyet,' ran a series on the Armenians in
which it became clear something had happened that no one had really
heard about before. No admissions were made but there was a very
interesting moment, where they said republican Prime Minister Kemal
Ataturk really disapproved of the massacres. There are new ideas
getting into the system and many intellectuals and writers who are
becoming braver."
That Washington Post article Arsineh posted on her log was cool, and so is this excerpt from a PanArmenian article ...
At the conference, Turkish historian Fikret Adanir stated that the carnages of Armenians at the beginning of the 20-th century are nothing but genocide. “It is my personal opinion”, he said.
Looking at the photos of the protest, I see a very interesting role reversal. The establishment role is played by the conference attendees inside...and the Genocide deniers are on the outside protesting. Finally.
In the early 90's there was a group of Greek and Armenian UVA students were promoting a Genocide Rally in DC-- and one of the Greek students received a hate e-mail stating: "yelling and screaming in the streets like shameless prostitutes will not serve your 'cause'...". hmmm...but it sure does promote democracy.
Check out this interview with Elif Safak:
www.aztagdaily.com/interviews/Shafak.htm
The conference got radio coverage on today's broadcast of The World, a public radio daily here in the U.S.
http://www.theworld.org/latesteditions/09/20050926.shtml
Who are the conferees? Are they academics? Are they turkish? Ninety-nine point nine percent of the work I've ever seen concerning 1915 etc has authors who are armenian. Allows the observation, by whoever likes to make it, that these authors' depictions are to self-serve and maybe not just to document. Couldn't make that case if the authors had a random worldwide mix of citizenships, but it isn't so. So I assumed the people who wanted to put on this conference would be armenian too. Now I get the whiff though that maybe not?? But I can't find any coverage talking about the conference itself, it's all confined to the controversy instead. I'm looking. Do you know anything?
They are Turkish, David. And 99% of the work is not by Armenians - there are a few non-Armenian historians out there (including a Turk or two) that write about the Genocide. The speakers at the Armenian Genocide Conference in Yerevan in April this year were very impressive and probably less than half were Armenian.
I agree, 99.9% is way off... the names Hilmar Kaiser, Samantha Power, Israel Charney come to mind.
99.9% was figurative. I took particular interest in the subject years ago and read what materials I came across at the time, most of those from armenian sources hence my impression. Thanks for the names, unknown to me. I found information on Power and Charney, but not Kaiser, by internet search. Also, Christian Science Monitor had an article yesterday
http://www.christiansciencemonitor.com/2005/0926/p07s02-woeu.html
Guys, is there any way we can find Hrant Dink's conference speech?
According to Turkish Daily News, "Hrant Dink's story about an elderly Armenian woman in Sivas evoked
some tears."
Sivas is where my grandmother was from. I went there after she'd died and located a 93-year old woman who remembered our family and my grandmother, 70 years after their emigration.
David - if you write up the story I'd love to add it to Armeniapedia!!
I'll try to organize something about it.
Hi, everybody. I am from Estonia, and took interest in the issue.
Shouldn`t Armenia start the same scenario as Jews did against Germany in case the very fact of genocide is admitted by the turks? I mean getting finacial reimbursements and eventually some territory back?
Given all the facts, why not filing a law case against Turkey?
Best of luck.
Alex
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