Armenian News... A Topalian
Symposium sponsored by Brighton University
to commemorate the centenary of the Armenian genocide/massacres.
Minister Nalbandin had a working dinner with UK's Minister for Europe
David Lidington. The parties referred to Armenian-British relations,
Armenia-EU cooperation, the Ukrainian crisis and the ways of its
settlement, and a number of other issues on international agenda.
The interlocutors discussed the ways of solving the regional
conflicts. Minister Nalbandian presented the joint efforts of Armenia
and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs toward the peaceful settlement
of the Karabakh conflict. David Lidington assured of his country's
commitment to the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.
Minister Nalbandian also gave an extended interview to the BBC.
RFE/RL Report
Pope Francis Remembers Armenian `Christian Martyrs'
08.09.2015
Pope Francis has drawn parallels between the ongoing persecution of
ancient Christian communities of the Middle East and the suffering of
Armenians in the region, which culminated in the 1915 genocide in
Ottoman Turkey.
Francis paid tribute to Armenians massacred "just for being
Christians" after presiding on Monday over a morning mass at the
Vatican's St. Martha chapel attended by the top Armenian Catholic
clergymen, including the recently elected Patriarch Gregory Peter XX.
"One of many great persecutions: that of the Armenian people," Francis
said in remarks reported by Radio Vatican. "The first nation to
convert to Christianity: the first. They were persecuted just for
being Christians."
"The Armenian people were persecuted, chased away from their homeland,
[left] helpless, in the desert," he added in a clear reference to the
1915 slaughter of some 1.5 million Armenian subjects of the Ottoman
Empire.
Francis referred to those massacres as "the first genocide of the 20th
century" in April while holding a special mass at the Vatican's
St. Peter's basilica dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the
tragedy. Turkey reacted angrily to that characterization, accusing the
pontiff of distorting history and recalling its ambassador to the
Vatican in protest.
Armenia, whose president Serzh Sarkisian was present at the landmark
Vatican liturgy, rejected the Turkish criticism. Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian praised Francis for delivering the "important
message of solidarity with and support to the Armenian people."
Francis on Monday put the Armenian suffering in the context of
historical Christian martyrdom epitomized by Jesus Christ. "Dear
brothers and sisters, there is no Christianity without persecution,"
he declared, according to Radio Vatican. "Today too, this happens
before the whole world, with the complicit silence of many powerful
leaders who could stop it. We are facing this Christian fate: go on
the same path of Jesus."
"We now, in the newspapers, hear the horror of what some terrorist
groups do, who slit the throats of people just because [their victims]
are Christians. We think of the Egyptian martyrs, recently, on the
Libyan coast, who were slaughtered while pronouncing the name of
Jesus," he said.
"We do not know what will happen here. Only let the Lord give us the
grace, should this persecution happen here one day, of the courage and
the witness that all Christian martyrs have shown, and especially the
Christians of the Armenian people," concluded the pontiff.
armradio.am
THE ECONOMIC MOTIVES BEHIND THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
07 Sep 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
"The motives behind the Armenian Genocide were primarily economic,
not religious. The material loss caoused to Armenians as a resilut
of the Genocide was four times larger than Turkey's foreign debt
at the time," lawer, political scientist Izabella Muradyan says. He
research of Turkey's legal documents reveals facts that often scip
the attention of historians.
When planning the mass killing of Armenians in 1915, the Young Turk
Government first announced Jihad. All Armenian living on the territory
of Turkey were announced enemies and according to the Sunni law, the
first one to kill the enemy would receive the latter's wealth. Five
percent of the Armenian porperty was thus had to be transferred to the
bunegt of the Young Turks, the rest would go to the murderer. Izabella
Muradyan believes that with this very law the authorities involved
a great number of Muslims in the mass killing of Armenians.
After the massacre, Turkey adopted a law, making it legal to seize
the property of Armenians. It applied to both movable property and
real estate, and the bank accounts.
"Turkey's alley Germany simply copied some of the laws later and
applied it against Jews," the lawyer says. She's assured that the main
motive behind the Armenian genocide was economic, not religious. She
reminded the 1915 massacre of Hamshen Armenians, who had been following
Islam since the 16th century.
The bankrupt Ottoman Empire sole the property of Armenians, but the
land and its bowels where the most precious. "If we look closely at
the geologic map, we'll see that the first killings took place in
areas rich in natural resources," Muradyan says.
The lawyer is assured, that the Armenian Genoicde has not been fully
recognized and condemned not only because of Turkey's 'denialism',
but also due to the economic interests of the superpowers. "Turkey's
foreign partners have accumulated huge wealth on the areas previously
belonging to Armenians, and refusing from it would be very difficult."
Researcher at Matenadaran Institute Anahit Astoyan says the burden
of plunder of the Armenian property lies not only with the Young
Turks, but also the Kemalists, i.e. the modern-day Turkey. "By
exterminating the Western Armenians the Young Turks and Kemalists
got rid of a powerful competitor from the economic arena and created
a huge capital by expropriating their property.
According to her, even some Turkish historians declare today that
the economy of modern-day Turkey is almost completely based on the
property grabbed from Armenians.
Despite the severe war conditions, the Ottoman budget had an
unprecedented rise between 1914 and 1918. According to the data of
the British intelligence, the Turkish authorities used the Armenian
funds to cover the huge war expenses and pay off a considerable
part of the foreign debt. The Kemalist Movement, which resulted in
the creation of the Turkish Republic in 1923, also succeeded thanks
to the Armenian properties. "Therefore, the Turkish Republic cannot
escape material responsibility," Astoyan says.
Henceforth, on every December 9, the UN will commemorate and honor the
victims of all genocides. Even though the resolution does not mention
any particular genocide, it is up to Armenians to ensure that their
genocide is included in official UN commemorations on that date. No
one will be surprised should the Turkish government attempt to block
such Armenian efforts!
Ironically, Turkey was one of the co-sponsors of the genocide
resolution, probably out of a concern that opposing it would have
revealed its deep-seated anxiety on the subject of
genocide. Consequently, Turkish officials acted as if this resolution
was unrelated to their country's past and present genocidal crimes
against Armenians, Assyrians, Greeks and Kurds!
Among the 84 countries co-sponsoring the resolution were the United
States, Russia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, Japan, and
Iran. Interestingly, Azerbaijan and Rwanda did not co-sponsor
it. Azerbaijan was reluctant to support any resolution proposed by
Armenia. Rwanda, on the other hand, felt the resolution was
unnecessary, since the UN had designated April 7 as International Day
of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda. In contrast, Israel
co-sponsored the resolution, even though the UN had already set
January 27 as International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the
Victims of the Holocaust.
The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect issued a statement
last Friday commending the adoption of the UN resolution, and listing
the =80=9Csignificant anniversaries of the most atrocious crimes of
the last century,' including `the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, 40th
anniversary of the Khmer Rouge's atrocities in Cambodia, and the 20th
anniversaries of the genocide in Rwanda and at Srebrenica, Bosnia and
Herzegovina.'
Amb. Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, Armenia's Representative to the UN, spoke of
his `sense of duty,' while presenting the proposed resolution to the
General Assembly on Sept. 11. Paying tribute to Raphael Lemkin who had
coined the term genocide, the Ambassador stated: `For the victims of
our past inaction, the International Day will render dignity. The
denial to millions of the sanctity of life is ultimate injustice. Justice d
Another genocide milestone forgotten by the international community
and Armenians is the 30th anniversary of the adoption of a report by
the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection
of Minorities. The historic document titled, `Revised and updated
report on the question of the prevention and punishment of the crime
of genocide,' was drafted by British Rapporteur Benjamin Whitaker. It
is noteworthy that Amb. Mnatsakanyan referred to this report twice in
his speech, while introducing the genocide resolution to the UN.
In paragraph 24 of his report, Whitaker cited several cases of
genocide in the 20th century, specifically mentioning the Armenian
Genocide. Moreover, in footnote 13, Whitaker added: `At least 1
million, and possibly well over half of the Armenian population, are
reliably estimated to have been killed or death marched by independent
authorities and eye-witnesses. This is corroborated by reports in
United States, German and British archives and of contemporary
diplomats in the Ottoman Empire, including those of its ally
Germany. The German Ambassador, Wangenheim, for example, on 7 July
1915 wrote, `the [Turkish] government is indeed pursuing its goal of
exterminating the Armenian race in the Ottoman Empire' (Wilhelmstrasse
archives).'
Regrettably, Whitaker passed away last year. But, there are three
other former members of the UN Sub-Commission -- Erica Daes (Greek),
Leandro Despouys (Argentinian), and Louis Joinet (French) -- who
staunchly supported the reference to the Armenian Genocide in the
Whitaker report which the Sub-Commission adopted on August 29, 1985,
by a 14-1 vote. All three human rights experts should be invited to
the United Nations on Dec. 9, 2015, to mark the 30th anniversary of
the Whitaker Report, and recognize his unique contributions to the
cause of prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide!
Amb. Mnatsakanyan, Armenia's Foreign Ministry, and the Armenian
government should be commended for their effective leadership at the
UN on genocide prevention!
Attached is the final programme for the day 29/10/2015 .
As stated on the programme, anyone interested to learn more about
the tragic fate of this ancient Christian civilisation is able to attend free
of charge but will need to register asap. The capacity of the room
allocated by Brighton Uni is 60 seats .
armradio.am
armradio.am
ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTER STARTS VISIT TO LONDON
10 Sep 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
Within the framework of an official visit to the United Kingdom,
Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting with
Philip Hammond, UK Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth
Affairs. The avenues for the expansion of cooperation in different
spheres were discussed.
The Ministers referred to Armenia-EU relations, the steps toward
creating new legal framework for cooperation.
The interlocutors exchanged views on the situation in the Middle East,
the Syrian crisis and the ways of its resolution, the international
community's fight against terrorism and the agreements on Iran's
nuclear program.
Minister Nalbandian briefed his British counterpart on the
10 Sep 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
Within the framework of an official visit to the United Kingdom,
Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting with
Philip Hammond, UK Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth
Affairs. The avenues for the expansion of cooperation in different
spheres were discussed.
The Ministers referred to Armenia-EU relations, the steps toward
creating new legal framework for cooperation.
The interlocutors exchanged views on the situation in the Middle East,
the Syrian crisis and the ways of its resolution, the international
community's fight against terrorism and the agreements on Iran's
nuclear program.
Minister Nalbandian briefed his British counterpart on the
events dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide. In this context the Armenian FM expressed gratitude
to for co-authoring the Resolution on the Prevention of Genocide
submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in March.
Minister Nalbandin had a working dinner with UK's Minister for Europe
David Lidington. The parties referred to Armenian-British relations,
Armenia-EU cooperation, the Ukrainian crisis and the ways of its
settlement, and a number of other issues on international agenda.
The interlocutors discussed the ways of solving the regional
conflicts. Minister Nalbandian presented the joint efforts of Armenia
and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs toward the peaceful settlement
of the Karabakh conflict. David Lidington assured of his country's
commitment to the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.
Minister Nalbandian also gave an extended interview to the BBC.
RFE/RL Report
Pope Francis Remembers Armenian `Christian Martyrs'
08.09.2015
Pope Francis has drawn parallels between the ongoing persecution of
ancient Christian communities of the Middle East and the suffering of
Armenians in the region, which culminated in the 1915 genocide in
Ottoman Turkey.
Francis paid tribute to Armenians massacred "just for being
Christians" after presiding on Monday over a morning mass at the
Vatican's St. Martha chapel attended by the top Armenian Catholic
clergymen, including the recently elected Patriarch Gregory Peter XX.
"One of many great persecutions: that of the Armenian people," Francis
said in remarks reported by Radio Vatican. "The first nation to
convert to Christianity: the first. They were persecuted just for
being Christians."
"The Armenian people were persecuted, chased away from their homeland,
[left] helpless, in the desert," he added in a clear reference to the
1915 slaughter of some 1.5 million Armenian subjects of the Ottoman
Empire.
Francis referred to those massacres as "the first genocide of the 20th
century" in April while holding a special mass at the Vatican's
St. Peter's basilica dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the
tragedy. Turkey reacted angrily to that characterization, accusing the
pontiff of distorting history and recalling its ambassador to the
Vatican in protest.
Armenia, whose president Serzh Sarkisian was present at the landmark
Vatican liturgy, rejected the Turkish criticism. Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian praised Francis for delivering the "important
message of solidarity with and support to the Armenian people."
Francis on Monday put the Armenian suffering in the context of
historical Christian martyrdom epitomized by Jesus Christ. "Dear
brothers and sisters, there is no Christianity without persecution,"
he declared, according to Radio Vatican. "Today too, this happens
before the whole world, with the complicit silence of many powerful
leaders who could stop it. We are facing this Christian fate: go on
the same path of Jesus."
"We now, in the newspapers, hear the horror of what some terrorist
groups do, who slit the throats of people just because [their victims]
are Christians. We think of the Egyptian martyrs, recently, on the
Libyan coast, who were slaughtered while pronouncing the name of
Jesus," he said.
"We do not know what will happen here. Only let the Lord give us the
grace, should this persecution happen here one day, of the courage and
the witness that all Christian martyrs have shown, and especially the
Christians of the Armenian people," concluded the pontiff.
armradio.am
THE ECONOMIC MOTIVES BEHIND THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
07 Sep 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
"The motives behind the Armenian Genocide were primarily economic,
not religious. The material loss caoused to Armenians as a resilut
of the Genocide was four times larger than Turkey's foreign debt
at the time," lawer, political scientist Izabella Muradyan says. He
research of Turkey's legal documents reveals facts that often scip
the attention of historians.
When planning the mass killing of Armenians in 1915, the Young Turk
Government first announced Jihad. All Armenian living on the territory
of Turkey were announced enemies and according to the Sunni law, the
first one to kill the enemy would receive the latter's wealth. Five
percent of the Armenian porperty was thus had to be transferred to the
bunegt of the Young Turks, the rest would go to the murderer. Izabella
Muradyan believes that with this very law the authorities involved
a great number of Muslims in the mass killing of Armenians.
After the massacre, Turkey adopted a law, making it legal to seize
the property of Armenians. It applied to both movable property and
real estate, and the bank accounts.
"Turkey's alley Germany simply copied some of the laws later and
applied it against Jews," the lawyer says. She's assured that the main
motive behind the Armenian genocide was economic, not religious. She
reminded the 1915 massacre of Hamshen Armenians, who had been following
Islam since the 16th century.
The bankrupt Ottoman Empire sole the property of Armenians, but the
land and its bowels where the most precious. "If we look closely at
the geologic map, we'll see that the first killings took place in
areas rich in natural resources," Muradyan says.
The lawyer is assured, that the Armenian Genoicde has not been fully
recognized and condemned not only because of Turkey's 'denialism',
but also due to the economic interests of the superpowers. "Turkey's
foreign partners have accumulated huge wealth on the areas previously
belonging to Armenians, and refusing from it would be very difficult."
Researcher at Matenadaran Institute Anahit Astoyan says the burden
of plunder of the Armenian property lies not only with the Young
Turks, but also the Kemalists, i.e. the modern-day Turkey. "By
exterminating the Western Armenians the Young Turks and Kemalists
got rid of a powerful competitor from the economic arena and created
a huge capital by expropriating their property.
According to her, even some Turkish historians declare today that
the economy of modern-day Turkey is almost completely based on the
property grabbed from Armenians.
Despite the severe war conditions, the Ottoman budget had an
unprecedented rise between 1914 and 1918. According to the data of
the British intelligence, the Turkish authorities used the Armenian
funds to cover the huge war expenses and pay off a considerable
part of the foreign debt. The Kemalist Movement, which resulted in
the creation of the Turkish Republic in 1923, also succeeded thanks
to the Armenian properties. "Therefore, the Turkish Republic cannot
escape material responsibility," Astoyan says.
OF VAN
September 5, 2015
Photograph source: National Geographic, August, 1919
The history of the Armenian Genocide was recorded with tens of
thousands of documents, including diplomatic reports, witness'
testimonies, memoirs and survivors' oral stories.
Besides, pictures by Armenian and foreign photographers during the
Genocide convey exceptional factual evidence. New photos still keep
emerging year after year, proving the fact of the Armenian Genocide
and its consequences. The Armenian Genocide Museum Institute gathered
photos depicting the Armenian Genocide in a book, titled "100 photo
stories on the Armenian Genocide," and ArmenianGenocide100.org will
regularly present them.
The photograph was released in the National Geographic magazine's
second issue of 1919, in an article by Maynard Owen Wiilliams. The
little heroes in the photograph, the eldest of whom was twelve
years old, overcame many difficulties and reached Van without the
permission of Artamet guard. This photograph was undoubtedly taken
shortly after the heroic self-defense of Van, but was published in
an American journal much later.
"Carrying wooden rifles, they had come to the governor of Van
Hambartsumiants [Kosti Hambartsumian (1882-1918) - reference by
ArmenianGenocide100.org] to demand real weapons, for they were ready
to fight till the end and defend their families, with some of their
relatives already gone," Williams writes.
During the years of the Armenian Genocide self-defense battles were
held in several cities of Western Armenia. The fierce resistance that
took place in the city of Van from April 7 to May 6, 1915 ended in a
victory. The excellently organized heroic resistance of Van was the
longest and the most decisive one.
Residents of Van fought courageously. The women, elderly and children
all took part in the bloody resistance realizing just how important
it was to defend their homes and dignity.
"Armenians serving in the military, who, according to the defense
minister, fought bravely not only in Dardanelles but also in the
Caucasian front against Russia, were mostly disarmed and used by
the army as porters or road reconstruction workers. There has been
news from nearly all of the districts that Armenians in forced labor
were not the only ones to be killed by their Muslim friends in remote
places. Groups of 80, 100 and more people were shot dead by soldiers
and military gendarmerie that followed the commands of their officers.
We will possibly never find out the real numbers of killed Armenian
army recruits, at least not until the end of the war."
Johannes Lepsius
German missioner, eyewitness of the Armenian Genocide
September 5, 2015
Photograph source: National Geographic, August, 1919
The history of the Armenian Genocide was recorded with tens of
thousands of documents, including diplomatic reports, witness'
testimonies, memoirs and survivors' oral stories.
Besides, pictures by Armenian and foreign photographers during the
Genocide convey exceptional factual evidence. New photos still keep
emerging year after year, proving the fact of the Armenian Genocide
and its consequences. The Armenian Genocide Museum Institute gathered
photos depicting the Armenian Genocide in a book, titled "100 photo
stories on the Armenian Genocide," and ArmenianGenocide100.org will
regularly present them.
The photograph was released in the National Geographic magazine's
second issue of 1919, in an article by Maynard Owen Wiilliams. The
little heroes in the photograph, the eldest of whom was twelve
years old, overcame many difficulties and reached Van without the
permission of Artamet guard. This photograph was undoubtedly taken
shortly after the heroic self-defense of Van, but was published in
an American journal much later.
"Carrying wooden rifles, they had come to the governor of Van
Hambartsumiants [Kosti Hambartsumian (1882-1918) - reference by
ArmenianGenocide100.org] to demand real weapons, for they were ready
to fight till the end and defend their families, with some of their
relatives already gone," Williams writes.
During the years of the Armenian Genocide self-defense battles were
held in several cities of Western Armenia. The fierce resistance that
took place in the city of Van from April 7 to May 6, 1915 ended in a
victory. The excellently organized heroic resistance of Van was the
longest and the most decisive one.
Residents of Van fought courageously. The women, elderly and children
all took part in the bloody resistance realizing just how important
it was to defend their homes and dignity.
"Armenians serving in the military, who, according to the defense
minister, fought bravely not only in Dardanelles but also in the
Caucasian front against Russia, were mostly disarmed and used by
the army as porters or road reconstruction workers. There has been
news from nearly all of the districts that Armenians in forced labor
were not the only ones to be killed by their Muslim friends in remote
places. Groups of 80, 100 and more people were shot dead by soldiers
and military gendarmerie that followed the commands of their officers.
We will possibly never find out the real numbers of killed Armenian
army recruits, at least not until the end of the war."
Johannes Lepsius
German missioner, eyewitness of the Armenian Genocide
Commentary
United Nations to Commemorate Victims of All Genocides
United Nations to Commemorate Victims of All Genocides
on Dec. 9
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
On Sept. 11, after years of persistent diplomatic efforts, the
Republic of Armenia succeeded in having the United Nations General
Assembly adopt by consensus a generic resolution on all genocides.
Introduced by Armenia and co-sponsored by 83 other nations, the
resolution establishes December 9 as the `International Day of
Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and
of the Prevention of this Crime.' Dec. 9 was chosen since the UN
Genocide Convention was adopted on that day in 1948.
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
On Sept. 11, after years of persistent diplomatic efforts, the
Republic of Armenia succeeded in having the United Nations General
Assembly adopt by consensus a generic resolution on all genocides.
Introduced by Armenia and co-sponsored by 83 other nations, the
resolution establishes December 9 as the `International Day of
Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and
of the Prevention of this Crime.' Dec. 9 was chosen since the UN
Genocide Convention was adopted on that day in 1948.
Henceforth, on every December 9, the UN will commemorate and honor the
victims of all genocides. Even though the resolution does not mention
any particular genocide, it is up to Armenians to ensure that their
genocide is included in official UN commemorations on that date. No
one will be surprised should the Turkish government attempt to block
such Armenian efforts!
Ironically, Turkey was one of the co-sponsors of the genocide
resolution, probably out of a concern that opposing it would have
revealed its deep-seated anxiety on the subject of
genocide. Consequently, Turkish officials acted as if this resolution
was unrelated to their country's past and present genocidal crimes
against Armenians, Assyrians, Greeks and Kurds!
Among the 84 countries co-sponsoring the resolution were the United
States, Russia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, Japan, and
Iran. Interestingly, Azerbaijan and Rwanda did not co-sponsor
it. Azerbaijan was reluctant to support any resolution proposed by
Armenia. Rwanda, on the other hand, felt the resolution was
unnecessary, since the UN had designated April 7 as International Day
of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda. In contrast, Israel
co-sponsored the resolution, even though the UN had already set
January 27 as International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the
Victims of the Holocaust.
The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect issued a statement
last Friday commending the adoption of the UN resolution, and listing
the =80=9Csignificant anniversaries of the most atrocious crimes of
the last century,' including `the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, 40th
anniversary of the Khmer Rouge's atrocities in Cambodia, and the 20th
anniversaries of the genocide in Rwanda and at Srebrenica, Bosnia and
Herzegovina.'
Amb. Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, Armenia's Representative to the UN, spoke of
his `sense of duty,' while presenting the proposed resolution to the
General Assembly on Sept. 11. Paying tribute to Raphael Lemkin who had
coined the term genocide, the Ambassador stated: `For the victims of
our past inaction, the International Day will render dignity. The
denial to millions of the sanctity of life is ultimate injustice. Justice d
enied haunts generations of survivors. We speak from experience.'
Another genocide milestone forgotten by the international community
and Armenians is the 30th anniversary of the adoption of a report by
the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection
of Minorities. The historic document titled, `Revised and updated
report on the question of the prevention and punishment of the crime
of genocide,' was drafted by British Rapporteur Benjamin Whitaker. It
is noteworthy that Amb. Mnatsakanyan referred to this report twice in
his speech, while introducing the genocide resolution to the UN.
In paragraph 24 of his report, Whitaker cited several cases of
genocide in the 20th century, specifically mentioning the Armenian
Genocide. Moreover, in footnote 13, Whitaker added: `At least 1
million, and possibly well over half of the Armenian population, are
reliably estimated to have been killed or death marched by independent
authorities and eye-witnesses. This is corroborated by reports in
United States, German and British archives and of contemporary
diplomats in the Ottoman Empire, including those of its ally
Germany. The German Ambassador, Wangenheim, for example, on 7 July
1915 wrote, `the [Turkish] government is indeed pursuing its goal of
exterminating the Armenian race in the Ottoman Empire' (Wilhelmstrasse
archives).'
Regrettably, Whitaker passed away last year. But, there are three
other former members of the UN Sub-Commission -- Erica Daes (Greek),
Leandro Despouys (Argentinian), and Louis Joinet (French) -- who
staunchly supported the reference to the Armenian Genocide in the
Whitaker report which the Sub-Commission adopted on August 29, 1985,
by a 14-1 vote. All three human rights experts should be invited to
the United Nations on Dec. 9, 2015, to mark the 30th anniversary of
the Whitaker Report, and recognize his unique contributions to the
cause of prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide!
Amb. Mnatsakanyan, Armenia's Foreign Ministry, and the Armenian
government should be commended for their effective leadership at the
UN on genocide prevention!
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