Armenian News...A Topalian
PRESS RELEASE - Catholicosate of Cilicia
`The Acts of the Ottoman Empire against Armenians and other
Christian Communities in 1915 can only be defined as Genocide,'
stated His Holiness Aram I
Antelias - On July 6 2015, a three-day conference on the Syriac
Genocide, entitled `Martyrdom and Faith,' began at Holy Spirit
University of Kaslik, Lebanon, in the presence of six Christian
Religious Heads of the region. During the opening session, His Holiness
Aram I spoke to the conference, addressing the following points:
1. In legal terms, the violence against Armenians, Syriacs, Greeks
and other Christian communities that occurred within the Ottoman Empire
in 1915, in both purpose and method, was genocide. In 1915 the term
Genocide did not yet exist in the dictionary of international law, but
in their intent, planning, organization and execution, the actions of
the Ottoman Turks in 1915 were tantamount to what has been defined in
the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of
Genocide as genocide.
2. According to international law, a state is responsible for the
unlawful acts performed by its predecessors if that state has continued
to exist in an uninterrupted way irrespective of regime change. The
Republic of Turkey is the continuation of the Ottoman Empire of 1915
with all its rights and obligations. Hence, the modern Turkish State
carries the responsibility of the Genocide and is accountable to the
victim groups.
3. According to international law, genocide is a crime against
humanity with the intent to destroy the victim group in whole or in
part. The perpetrators are subject to being charged and tried in
international penal tribunals. This process implies recognition of the
genocide and the right of the victims to demand restitution.
4. Armenians and Syriacs everywhere are commemorating the 100th
anniversary of their genocide in 2015. During each commemoration we
recommit ourselves to the legacy of the victims and continue to demand
the restitution of our properties. Armenians, Syriacs and Greeks have
thousands of churches, monasteries and other properties belonging to
their Churches. Some have been destroyed or appropriated. We demand
stated His Holiness Aram I
Antelias - On July 6 2015, a three-day conference on the Syriac
Genocide, entitled `Martyrdom and Faith,' began at Holy Spirit
University of Kaslik, Lebanon, in the presence of six Christian
Religious Heads of the region. During the opening session, His Holiness
Aram I spoke to the conference, addressing the following points:
1. In legal terms, the violence against Armenians, Syriacs, Greeks
and other Christian communities that occurred within the Ottoman Empire
in 1915, in both purpose and method, was genocide. In 1915 the term
Genocide did not yet exist in the dictionary of international law, but
in their intent, planning, organization and execution, the actions of
the Ottoman Turks in 1915 were tantamount to what has been defined in
the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of
Genocide as genocide.
2. According to international law, a state is responsible for the
unlawful acts performed by its predecessors if that state has continued
to exist in an uninterrupted way irrespective of regime change. The
Republic of Turkey is the continuation of the Ottoman Empire of 1915
with all its rights and obligations. Hence, the modern Turkish State
carries the responsibility of the Genocide and is accountable to the
victim groups.
3. According to international law, genocide is a crime against
humanity with the intent to destroy the victim group in whole or in
part. The perpetrators are subject to being charged and tried in
international penal tribunals. This process implies recognition of the
genocide and the right of the victims to demand restitution.
4. Armenians and Syriacs everywhere are commemorating the 100th
anniversary of their genocide in 2015. During each commemoration we
recommit ourselves to the legacy of the victims and continue to demand
the restitution of our properties. Armenians, Syriacs and Greeks have
thousands of churches, monasteries and other properties belonging to
their Churches. Some have been destroyed or appropriated. We demand
the return of those properties to the rightful owners.
5. Our demands are based on legal and political, not religious,
grounds. For centuries Christians and Muslims in the Middle East have
lived together in harmony. The recent violence and persecutions of
Christians and other minorities in Syria and Iraq is tantamount to
genocide. All religions and states must condemn it absolutely.
5. Our demands are based on legal and political, not religious,
grounds. For centuries Christians and Muslims in the Middle East have
lived together in harmony. The recent violence and persecutions of
Christians and other minorities in Syria and Iraq is tantamount to
genocide. All religions and states must condemn it absolutely.
armradio.am
POPE'S RECOGNITION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CHANGED
WORLD OPINION, PRELATE SAYS
10 Jul 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
The leader of Armenian Catholics in Eastern Europe has described
how the suffering inflicted by the 1915 genocide has echoed down the
generations to today.
Armenian Catholic Archbishop Raphael Francois Minassian of Eastern
Europe has praised the Pope's recognition of the scale of the massacre
carried out against Armenians by Ottoman forces during the First
World War.
Speaking in April during a Mass at St Peter's in Rome to mark the
centenary of the massacre, the Pope used the word "genocide" in a
reference to the killing of nearly 1.5 million Armenian Christians.
In an interview with Aid to the Church in Need, and other suffering
Christians, Archbishop Minassian said: "We were certain that the Pope
would remember the genocide, and his courage has changed the attitude
of the entire world."
The Archbishop gave his ACN interview during his visit to Rome for
the plenary annual session of ROACO (Riunione delle Opere di Aiuto
per le Chiese Orientali), an international symposium of aid agencies
for the Oriental Churches.
Referring to the Pope's statement during the Armenian Mass at St
Peter's, the archbishop stressed that Francis "had encouraged us to
pursue reconciliation - an act of the highest educational, spiritual
and human value, which helps us also to recover what we have lost."
Archbishop Minassian, who is responsible for the Armenian community
in Georgia, Armenia and the Russian Federation, described how
even Armenians who did not directly witness the massacre of 1915
nevertheless still suffer the consequences.
He said: "Some psychological attitudes, such as the instinctive fear
at the sight of an armed guard, have been passed down even to the
second and third generations."
Describing the situation in Armenia, Archbishop Minassian called
cooperation with the Armenian Apostolic Church "perfect" despite a
notable lack of suitable infrastructure within the Church itself.
He said: "In the parishes there are no church halls or offices,
everything has to be done inside the church itself," he admitted,
"Often the priests are obliged to celebrate the Sacred Liturgies
in school halls, with the result that we risk being looked upon as
a sect."
10 Jul 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
The leader of Armenian Catholics in Eastern Europe has described
how the suffering inflicted by the 1915 genocide has echoed down the
generations to today.
Armenian Catholic Archbishop Raphael Francois Minassian of Eastern
Europe has praised the Pope's recognition of the scale of the massacre
carried out against Armenians by Ottoman forces during the First
World War.
Speaking in April during a Mass at St Peter's in Rome to mark the
centenary of the massacre, the Pope used the word "genocide" in a
reference to the killing of nearly 1.5 million Armenian Christians.
In an interview with Aid to the Church in Need, and other suffering
Christians, Archbishop Minassian said: "We were certain that the Pope
would remember the genocide, and his courage has changed the attitude
of the entire world."
The Archbishop gave his ACN interview during his visit to Rome for
the plenary annual session of ROACO (Riunione delle Opere di Aiuto
per le Chiese Orientali), an international symposium of aid agencies
for the Oriental Churches.
Referring to the Pope's statement during the Armenian Mass at St
Peter's, the archbishop stressed that Francis "had encouraged us to
pursue reconciliation - an act of the highest educational, spiritual
and human value, which helps us also to recover what we have lost."
Archbishop Minassian, who is responsible for the Armenian community
in Georgia, Armenia and the Russian Federation, described how
even Armenians who did not directly witness the massacre of 1915
nevertheless still suffer the consequences.
He said: "Some psychological attitudes, such as the instinctive fear
at the sight of an armed guard, have been passed down even to the
second and third generations."
Describing the situation in Armenia, Archbishop Minassian called
cooperation with the Armenian Apostolic Church "perfect" despite a
notable lack of suitable infrastructure within the Church itself.
He said: "In the parishes there are no church halls or offices,
everything has to be done inside the church itself," he admitted,
"Often the priests are obliged to celebrate the Sacred Liturgies
in school halls, with the result that we risk being looked upon as
a sect."
TURKEY'S MUSLIM ARMENIANS COME OUT OF HIDING
TUNCELI, TURKEY - They dropped their language and religion to survive
after the 1915 genocide, but close to 100 years later, Turkey's
"hidden Armenians" want to take pride in their identity.
Some genocide survivors adopted Islam and blended in with the Kurds
in eastern Turkey's Dersim Mountains to avoid further persecution.
Several generations down the road, the town of Tunceli hosted a
landmark ceremony Wednesday for Genocide Remembrance Day, something
that has only ever happened in Istanbul and the large city of
Diyarbakir.
The massacre and deportation of Ottoman Armenians during World War I,
which Armenians claim left around 1.5 million dead, is described by
many countries as genocide, though the Turkish government continues
to reject the term.
Speaking in front of the ruins of Ergen church -- one of the few
remnants of Christian Armenian heritage in the region -- Miran Pirginc
Gultekin, president of the Dersim Armenian Association, explained it
is still rare to declare oneself openly as Armenian in Turkey.
"We decided that we had to get back to our true nature, that this
way of living was not satisfactory, that it was not fair to live with
another's identity and another's faith," he said.
Despite converting to Alevism, a heterodox sect of Islam, and taking
Turkish names, the ethnic Armenians who stayed on their ancestral land
suffered from continued discrimination and the elders often struggle
to summon their memories.
"My mother told me how her family was deported. She was a baby at the
time and her mother considered drowning her in despair," said Tahire
Aslanpencesi, an octogenarian from the village of Danaburan. "My
mother used to say all the misery that came after would have been
avoided had her mother drowned her.".
After converting to Islam, many of the "crypto-Armenians" said they
still face unfair treatment: Their land has been confiscated, the
men humiliated with "circumcision checks" in the army and some have
been tortured.
Hidir Boztas' grandfather converted to Islam, gave his son a Turkish
name and the clan intermarried with a Kurdish community in Alanyazi.
"We feel Armenian nonetheless and in any case the others always remind
us of where we come from. No matter how many of their daughters we
marry, and how many of ours we give them, they will continue to call
us Armenians," he said.
The Armenian community shared the Kurds' suffering when the regime
cracked down on Kurdish rebellions, from the 1938 revolt to the
insurrection started by the PKK group in 1984.
For a long time, only those who had left the ancestral homestead
dared to make their Armenian roots known.
Human rights campaigners gathered Wednesday in downtown Istanbul
carrying portraits of genocide victims.
They were only a handful, but they argued that the simple fact
that such an event was authorized and groups such as theirs invited
proved that attitudes were changing. "Ten years ago, such an event
was impossible in Turkey," said Benjamin Abtan," a European activist.
news.am
BELGIAN ARMENIANS AND ARAMEANS CONCERNED OVER
TUNCELI, TURKEY - They dropped their language and religion to survive
after the 1915 genocide, but close to 100 years later, Turkey's
"hidden Armenians" want to take pride in their identity.
Some genocide survivors adopted Islam and blended in with the Kurds
in eastern Turkey's Dersim Mountains to avoid further persecution.
Several generations down the road, the town of Tunceli hosted a
landmark ceremony Wednesday for Genocide Remembrance Day, something
that has only ever happened in Istanbul and the large city of
Diyarbakir.
The massacre and deportation of Ottoman Armenians during World War I,
which Armenians claim left around 1.5 million dead, is described by
many countries as genocide, though the Turkish government continues
to reject the term.
Speaking in front of the ruins of Ergen church -- one of the few
remnants of Christian Armenian heritage in the region -- Miran Pirginc
Gultekin, president of the Dersim Armenian Association, explained it
is still rare to declare oneself openly as Armenian in Turkey.
"We decided that we had to get back to our true nature, that this
way of living was not satisfactory, that it was not fair to live with
another's identity and another's faith," he said.
Despite converting to Alevism, a heterodox sect of Islam, and taking
Turkish names, the ethnic Armenians who stayed on their ancestral land
suffered from continued discrimination and the elders often struggle
to summon their memories.
"My mother told me how her family was deported. She was a baby at the
time and her mother considered drowning her in despair," said Tahire
Aslanpencesi, an octogenarian from the village of Danaburan. "My
mother used to say all the misery that came after would have been
avoided had her mother drowned her.".
After converting to Islam, many of the "crypto-Armenians" said they
still face unfair treatment: Their land has been confiscated, the
men humiliated with "circumcision checks" in the army and some have
been tortured.
Hidir Boztas' grandfather converted to Islam, gave his son a Turkish
name and the clan intermarried with a Kurdish community in Alanyazi.
"We feel Armenian nonetheless and in any case the others always remind
us of where we come from. No matter how many of their daughters we
marry, and how many of ours we give them, they will continue to call
us Armenians," he said.
The Armenian community shared the Kurds' suffering when the regime
cracked down on Kurdish rebellions, from the 1938 revolt to the
insurrection started by the PKK group in 1984.
For a long time, only those who had left the ancestral homestead
dared to make their Armenian roots known.
Human rights campaigners gathered Wednesday in downtown Istanbul
carrying portraits of genocide victims.
They were only a handful, but they argued that the simple fact
that such an event was authorized and groups such as theirs invited
proved that attitudes were changing. "Ten years ago, such an event
was impossible in Turkey," said Benjamin Abtan," a European activist.
news.am
BELGIAN ARMENIANS AND ARAMEANS CONCERNED OVER
WORDING IN GENOCIDE DRAFT RESOLUTION
15.07.2015
Armenian and Aramean communities of Belgium expressed their deep
concern over the wording in the draft resolution on the acknowledgement
of the Armenian Genocide by Belgium. The document was adopted on July 7
in Foreign Affairs Committee of Belgium's House of Representatives. The
Committee of Belgian Armenians, Committee of Hay Tad and the Aramean
Federation of Belgium criticize the ambiguity of the text, particularly
points 2 and 9, Nouvelles d'Arménie reports.
Point 2 demands the federal government of Belgium "to acknowledge
that modern Turkey cannot hold moral and historical liability for
the tragedy, survived by the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire." Point
9 urges to back the initiatives of NGOs in Turkey and Armenia, whose
work is aimed at normalizing the relations between the two countries.
The organizations of the Armenian and Aramaic communities labeled
the second point unsuccessful, noting that nowadays courageous
representatives of the intellectuals and members of Turkey's civil
society are advocating for truth, and struggling for the recognition
of the Armenian Genocide by their country despite threats.
"In contrast, the Turkish authorities rely on denial, continuing to
deny the proofs of the Armenian and Aramean Genocide, glorifying the
organizers. Thereby they make themselves successors of the actions
of the Ottoman Empire. At least the official Turkey holds moral
liability," the statement reads.
As to the ninth point, the authors of the statement said: "First of
all, it is necessary to contribute to bringing together the Belgium
Turkish associations, which recognize the Armenian Genocide, with
the Armenian and Aramean associations, to try to aligning the dialogue.
These kinds of initiatives will enhearten the Belgians of Turkish
descent, who don't dare to publicly acknowledge the Armenian and
Aramean Genocide."
Earlier, Foreign Affairs Committee of Belgium's House of
Representatives adopted a resolution on the Armenian Genocide
during the session on July 7. The draft resolution introduced by
the parliamentary majority was adopted. Following the debate, the
text was adopted, though not unanimously. Amendments proposed by the
opposition were declined by the majority of MPs.
15.07.2015
Armenian and Aramean communities of Belgium expressed their deep
concern over the wording in the draft resolution on the acknowledgement
of the Armenian Genocide by Belgium. The document was adopted on July 7
in Foreign Affairs Committee of Belgium's House of Representatives. The
Committee of Belgian Armenians, Committee of Hay Tad and the Aramean
Federation of Belgium criticize the ambiguity of the text, particularly
points 2 and 9, Nouvelles d'Arménie reports.
Point 2 demands the federal government of Belgium "to acknowledge
that modern Turkey cannot hold moral and historical liability for
the tragedy, survived by the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire." Point
9 urges to back the initiatives of NGOs in Turkey and Armenia, whose
work is aimed at normalizing the relations between the two countries.
The organizations of the Armenian and Aramaic communities labeled
the second point unsuccessful, noting that nowadays courageous
representatives of the intellectuals and members of Turkey's civil
society are advocating for truth, and struggling for the recognition
of the Armenian Genocide by their country despite threats.
"In contrast, the Turkish authorities rely on denial, continuing to
deny the proofs of the Armenian and Aramean Genocide, glorifying the
organizers. Thereby they make themselves successors of the actions
of the Ottoman Empire. At least the official Turkey holds moral
liability," the statement reads.
As to the ninth point, the authors of the statement said: "First of
all, it is necessary to contribute to bringing together the Belgium
Turkish associations, which recognize the Armenian Genocide, with
the Armenian and Aramean associations, to try to aligning the dialogue.
These kinds of initiatives will enhearten the Belgians of Turkish
descent, who don't dare to publicly acknowledge the Armenian and
Aramean Genocide."
Earlier, Foreign Affairs Committee of Belgium's House of
Representatives adopted a resolution on the Armenian Genocide
during the session on July 7. The draft resolution introduced by
the parliamentary majority was adopted. Following the debate, the
text was adopted, though not unanimously. Amendments proposed by the
opposition were declined by the majority of MPs.
The Calvert Journal
July 10 2015
Trailer for Turkish film on Armenian genocide released
The trailer for Lost Birds, the first film made in Turkey about the
Armenian genocide, has been released.
The film tells the story of a young brother and sister who were left
behind during the mass deportation of Armenians from Constantinople in
1915.
A joint venture of Armenian director Aren Perdeci and Turkish director
Ela Alyamac, Lost Birds is a landmark for Turkish cinema and will be
released later this year to mark the 100th anniversary of the tragedy.
The Armenian Genocide occurred when two million Armenians living in
Turkey were eliminated from their historic homeland through forced
deportations and massacres between 1915 and 1918.
panorama.am
TURKISH DIRECTOR HACI ORMAN 'S FILM BOYCOTTED IN
ISTANBUL, BUT TO BE SCREENED AT GOLDEN APRICOT FILM
FESTIVAL IN YEREVAN
14/07/2015
'Homo Politicus', a short film by Turkish director Haci Orman, will
be screened out of competition at Golden Apricot 12th International
Film Festival being held in Yerevan.
The film depicts the events during the Armenian Genocide committed in
the Ottoman Empire in 1915. It tells the story of German Protestant
missionary Johannes Lepsius who attempted to draw the attention of the
international community to Armenian massacres in Western Armenia. J.
Lepsius wrote the book "Bericht uber die Lage des armenischen Volkes
in der Turkei", in which he condemned the Armenian Genocide.
Speaking at a press conference in Yerevan, Haci Orman said he is
glad to participate in the Golden Apricot Festival. The director said
it is his first film and he was motivated by a desire to tell other
people about the events that took place a hundred years ago. "I am
going to address political problems again in my new works. I have long
been engaged in opposition political activity and I am not afraid of
pressure,' he noted.
According to H. Orman, the film was expected to be demonstrated at
Istanbul Festival but Turkish film directors boycotted it so 'Homo
Politicus' will be screened for the first time at Golden Apricot
Film Festival.
'Homo Politicus', a short film by Turkish director Haci Orman, will
be screened out of competition at Golden Apricot 12th International
Film Festival being held in Yerevan.
The film depicts the events during the Armenian Genocide committed in
the Ottoman Empire in 1915. It tells the story of German Protestant
missionary Johannes Lepsius who attempted to draw the attention of the
international community to Armenian massacres in Western Armenia. J.
Lepsius wrote the book "Bericht uber die Lage des armenischen Volkes
in der Turkei", in which he condemned the Armenian Genocide.
Speaking at a press conference in Yerevan, Haci Orman said he is
glad to participate in the Golden Apricot Festival. The director said
it is his first film and he was motivated by a desire to tell other
people about the events that took place a hundred years ago. "I am
going to address political problems again in my new works. I have long
been engaged in opposition political activity and I am not afraid of
pressure,' he noted.
According to H. Orman, the film was expected to be demonstrated at
Istanbul Festival but Turkish film directors boycotted it so 'Homo
Politicus' will be screened for the first time at Golden Apricot
Film Festival.
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