PROVIDENCE, RI—On October 26, 2019 under the auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian, the Providence community celebrated the 85th anniversary of Mourad Armenian School. The Mourad Armenian School has served as a cornerstone to preserve the Armenian language and culture in the community and for future generations.  

Rev. Fr. Kapriel Nazarian of Sts. Vartanantz Church offered the opening prayer followed by the singing of the national anthems by graduate Alysha Phillips. Garo Tashian, master of ceremonies and chairman of the 85th anniversary committee, welcomed close to 250 guests at the Providence Marriott Hotel, including past and present Armenian school students, teachers and school committee members. Tashian, a graduate of the school, spoke about his experience and how proud he was to be able to emcee the ceremony in Armenian. He asked the community to prioritize educating their children in an Armenian environment that nurtures their sense of belonging and strengthens their Armenian identity.  

Hagop Donoyan, vice-chairman of the Sts. Vartanantz Church Board of Trustees, congratulated the Mourad Armenian School for its diligent service to the community and wished the school continued success in educating future generations.

During his welcoming remarks, school committee chairman Hagop Khatchadourian stressed the importance of not only sending children to school, but also communicating with them in the Armenian language at home. “Every single Armenian is a flame, and if we don’t hold on to our story, language, beliefs and fatherland, that flame will go out,” he said.

The musical program began with the school anthem and Ov Em Yes, a song with delightful choreography; music teacher Raffi Rachdouni accompanied on piano. Graduates Taleen Donoyan and Shant Eghian sang Doon Im Hayreni with the accompaniment of Rosdom Mkrstchjan on guitar and Rachdouni on piano. The musical program concluded with a stunning dance performance by the students and led by Maral Kachadourian, the school’s long-time dance instructor.

During her congratulatory message, Armenian Relief Society (ARS) Eastern Region Board member Johanna Chilingirian expressed her personal feelings as the daughter of Anahid Hajian-Kibarian, who attended Armenian school, then served as a substitute teacher, and now principal. Chilingirian described the great joy she hears in her mother’s voice when she talks about the school and all the students she has enjoyed serving in her role as principal.

Tashian also announced that the Kibarian family will donate students’ tuition payments during the next academic year (2020-21), provided there is 85 percent attendance during the current academic year (2019-20). The Providence community and parents of the Mourad Armenian School enthusiastically thanked the Kibarian family for their generosity and expressed their unending gratitude to Hajian-Kibarian for her countless years of service and dedication to the school.

Tashian then reminded the community to come together and better the future of the community. “This means going back to the time where being Armenian and speaking the language was a priority for families, a time when parents would ensure their kids were involved in the Armenian community and especially in the Armenian school,” he added. 

Der Kapriel then offered his pastoral message, remembering the late Roxanne Arzoomanian, co-principal, who dedicated all her retirement years to the church, and especially to Mourad Armenian School. He spoke of the love he sees emanating from the teachers every Saturday morning during opening prayers and his weekly Bible lessons before the students begin their classroom studies. He said he could see how “the teachers love every single one of the students.” The students are not just greeted with a “hello,” but with a hug and kiss from their teachers. 

Teacher and school committee secretary Maggie Nalbandian noted the colorful Armenian alphabet wooden bookmarks at each place setting. They were handmade and painted individually by Nanar Hakobyan from the Republic of Artsakh. On behalf of every member of the Mourad Armenian School family, Nalbandian presented Hrair Hawk Khatcherian’s photography book “100” to Khatchadourian in appreciation for his decades-long efforts and tireless dedication.

During his formal remarks, His Eminence announced that the Prelacy was honoring those who have served the Mourad Armenian School for decades as teachers with special certificates of merit. The honorees were Zepur Donoyan, Maral Kachadourian, Angel Kozinian, Tigranoui Minassian, Maggie Nalbandian, Zvart Tahmassian and Menar Tarpinian. Carol Mesrobian was honored as the school committee treasurer for more than 40 years. Then His Eminence announced that His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia, sent a special pontifical blessing and message in appreciation of Hajian’s dedication to the Mourad Armenian School. The Prelate spoke about how unique the Providence community is in every way and referred with admiration to the students’ writings in the ad book commemorating the event. Several had thanked their parents and teachers and said they cannot wait to return to school as aides after graduation. The Archbishop encouraged the community to be rightful followers of the name bearer of the school, Sebastatsi Mourad, and become a healthy entity that preserves faith, culture and language for future generations.

The program concluded with the singing of Giligia. Live music was provided by the talented Kevork Artinian and his band.

Author information

Guest Contributor

Guest contributions to the Armenian Weekly are informative articles written and submitted by members of the community, which make up our community bulletin board.

|

The post Mourad Armenian School Celebrates 85th Anniversary appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

LOWELL, Mass.– Armenian National Committee of Merrimack Valley activists Aram, Armen and Ara Jeknavorian will be honored with the prestigious Armenian National Committee of America Eastern Region Vahan Cardashian Award at the 13^th annual ANCA Eastern Region banquet on Saturday, November 9, 2019, at the U Mass Lowell Inn & Conference Center located at 50 Warren Street, Lowell, MA 01852. This year’s banquet will begin at 6 pm with cocktails and silent auction before the dinner and awards program commences at 7:30 pm.

The Vahan Cardashian Award is given annually to ANCA Eastern Region activist(s) who demonstrate long-standing leadership and success on behalf of the Armenian Cause. The award is named in honor of the late Vahan Cardashian who led the American Committee for the Independence of Armenia (ACIA), the precursor to the Armenian National Committee of America.

The Jeknavorian brothers have worked diligently within the Armenian community to promote Armenian American issues as well as civic activism and awareness. Along with building key congressional relationships throughout the years, Aram, Armen and Ara have worked tirelessly in positions of leadership for the ANC of Merrimack Valley and numerous other Armenian American organizations throughout Northern Massachusetts.

“Our community is so proud and honored to have the Jeknavorian brothers recognized for their unwavering commitment to both the ANCA and the entire Merrimack Valley Armenian community. All three brothers have devoted their lives to promoting Hai Tahd and advocating on behalf of Armenia and Artsakh. The ANC of Merrimack Valley is eager to see our friends and supporters join us in honoring the Jeknavorian brothers for their continued efforts, which have led to significant political support from numerous elected officials in our area,” said Muriel Parseghian, 2019 ANCA-ER Banquet Committee member and ANC of Merrimack Valley Member

Aram, Armen and Ara Jeknavorian, natives of Lowell, MA, have served and held leadership positions with numerous Armenian organizations and committees supporting a diverse range of Armenian causes. They are alumni of the former Lowell Ararat AYF Chapter, long time members of the Lowell Aharonian ARF Gomideh, the Merrimack Valley ANC, the Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee of Merrimack Valley, the Armenian Genocide Monument Committee, and the Armenian-American Veterans of Lowell. In addition, they play an active role in the parishes of Sts. Vartanantz Armenian Church, Chelmsford and St. Gregory Armenian Church, North Andover.

Among their many projects undertaken over the years, the creation and dedication of the Mother’s Hands Armenian Genocide Monument at Lowell City Hall is especially cherished by the Jeknavorian brothers. The Jeknavorian brothers attribute their service to Hai Tad and the Armenian Community to their beloved parents, Abraham and Flora Jeknavorian, who served as inspiring role models through their life-long, dedicated involvement in the ARF, ARS and the Armenian Church.

The evening’s honorees also include Congressman Jim McGovern and Dr. Taner Akçam who will receive the ANCA-ER Freedom Award.

Heather Apigian Karafian will serve as the mistress of ceremonies and special guests include Congresswoman Lori Trahan who will introduce Congressman McGovern as well as the 2019 ANCA Eastern Region ANCA Leo Sarkisian interns Roubina Bozoian (New Jersey), Nairi Diratousian (New Jersey), Mary Galstian (Massachusetts), Daron Pogharian (Pennsylvania) and Lucine Poturyan (Connecticut) who was the Maral Melkonian Avetisyan Fellowship Recipient. ANCA-ER 2019 LSI Intern Mary Galstian will perform the national anthems.

For more information about this year’s banquet, please call (917) 428-1918 or email erbanquet@anca.org.

Author information

ANCA-Eastern Region

The Armenian National Committee of America Eastern Region is part of the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots organization, the ANCA. Working in coordination with the ANCA in Washington, DC, and a network of chapters and supporters throughout the Eastern United States, the ANCA-ER actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

|

The post ANCA-ER Banquet to Honor Local Merrimack Valley Activists appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

WASHINGTON, DC – Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-NJ) offered a scathing indictment of Turkish President Recep Erdogan’s escalating repression at home and aggression abroad in a 15-minute Senate floor speech during which he called for immediate Senate passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (S.Res.150) and Senate consideration of far-reaching sanctions over Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria.

Sen. Menendez’s remarks come as the ANCA continues its nationwide campaign to urge Senate passage of S.Res.150, building on the historic near-unanimous House passage of a similar measure (H.Res.296) last week. Advocates can thank House members who supported the measure, urge Senators to take action and ask President Trump to clearly and properly condemn this crime – all through one unified online action.

“We join with Senator Menendez in predicting a crushing defeat for Armenian Genocide denial on the floor of the U.S. Senate – where an overwhelming bipartisan majority is ready – eager in fact – to vote for S.Res.150, if and when they are given the opportunity to do so by Majority Leader McConnell,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “Please join with friends across all fifty states in calling on your two U.S. Senators to press for passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution,” continued Hamparian.

“Today, I would like to lay out a fact pattern that so many of my colleagues have come to see in recent weeks – that Turkey under Erdogan should not, Turkey under Erdogan cannot be seen as an ally,” stated Senator Menendez, who cited Turkey’s invasion of northern Cyprus, ongoing belligerence in the Eastern Mediterranean against Greece, the 2017 Erdogan-ordered attacks against peaceful protesters in Washington, DC among that government’s many acts of aggression.

“As momentum builds following the passage of the Armenian genocide resolution in the House, Turkish lobbyists are working overtime to block it in the Senate,” explained Senator Menendez. “Because they know that if this resolution were to come to the floor for a vote, it would pass resoundingly and send a clarion message that recognizes the truth. The Armenian genocide happened, it was a monstrous act and those who deny it are complicit in a terrible lie. The Senate should not bow to this pressure, it cannot bow to this pressure. Let’s pass this resolution today,” added Sen. Menendez.

Video of Sen. Menendez’s remarks was presented live on the ANCA’s Facebook page and shared broadly through a Greek and Armenian American effort led by the Hellenic American Leadership Council and the ANCA.

Sen. Menendez was joined by Sen. Ted Cruz in spearheading the Armenian Genocide Resolution (S.Res.150), which currently has over 20 co-sponsors. Like H.Res.296, the resolution establishes, as a matter of U.S. policy, 1) the rejection of Armenian Genocide denial, 2) ongoing official U.S. government recognition and remembrance of this crime, and 3) support for education about the Armenian Genocide in order to help prevent modern-day atrocities.

Just one day following Sen. Menendez’s floor remarks, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair James Risch (R-ID) stated that he would postpone any discussion of sanctions against Turkey pending President Erdogan’s visit to Washington, DC on November 13. Earlier in the day, President Trump tweeted that the meeting would take place, following a phone call with the Turkish President.

The announcement confirming the Erdogan-Trump meeting also followed statements by unnamed State Department sources noting opposition to the H.Res.296 and a Turkey sanctions measure adopted by the U.S. House on October 29.

“President Trump is pursuing of a Turkey-first foreign policy, blocking bipartisan sanctions, enforcing Ankara’s Armenian Genocide gag-rule, enabling its domestic crackdown and regional aggression, and – now – rewarding Erdogan for a high-profile White House visit,” noted Hamparian, following a Bloomberg news accounts announcing State Department opposition a week after the measure was passed. “The Senate should follow the House’s lead, upholding U.S. interests and American values by enacting Turkey sanctions and adopting the Armenian Genocide Resolution, S.Res.150,” added Hamparian.

The ANC of New Jersey has been a staunch ally of Senator Menendez dating back to his first election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992.

Author information

ANCA

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues. To learn more, visit www.anca.org.

|

The post Sen. Menendez Calls for Immediate Passage of Armenian Genocide Resolution, Turkey Sanctions appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

WASHINGTON, DC – Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Chairman Raffi Hamparian issued the following statement on the near-unanimous U.S. House passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.296).

“The ANCA is proud to have led the historic movement that delivered last week’s near-unanimous vote of the U.S. House of Representatives for H.Res.296 – the bipartisan resolution to end Ankara’s veto against honest American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.”

“The overwhelming passage of H.Res.296 (405 to 11) landed a powerful blow for justice, heralding the end of U.S. complicity in Turkey’s denials. This vote paves the way to a pro-active American policy that openly challenges Ankara’s obstruction of justice and pivots toward U.S. support for a truthful, just, and comprehensive resolution of this still unpunished crime.”

“Our landmark achievement was the direct result of decades of high-level Washington advocacy, sophisticated legislative strategy, and relentless grassroots education, civic engagement, and electoral activism by our regional ANCA offices, ANCA chapters, local advocates, and coalition partners.  We are particularly gratified that, in adopting H.Res.296, we saw the U.S. House properly cite the Greek, Assyrian, Chaldean, Syriac, Aramean, Maronite and other Christian victims of Turkey’s genocidal campaign. We will continue to work to complete the recognition process and put in place the remedies for Turkey’s crimes until justice is served to all our peoples.”

“I was pleased, on behalf of our community and coalition partners, to personally meet with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in Los Angeles in order to thank her for her courage and leadership in bringing H.Res.296 to the House floor. I share our thanks, as well, with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) who worked with the ANCA to make sure the Armenian Genocide resolution enjoyed broad bi-partisan support. And, of course, we express our deep appreciation to the sponsors of the Armenian Genocide resolution – Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), our great Armenian American champions, Congresswomen Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Jackie Speier (D-CA), along with stalwart allies like Congressmen Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Eliot Engel (D-NY), Jim Costa (D-CA), and Jim McGovern (D-MA) – for working hand in hand with us to move America to the right side of the Armenian Genocide.”

“The historic U.S. House vote on H.Res.296 represents a tribute to our community – whose rock-solid commitment to justice – remains the source of the ANCA’s power and strength.”

Author information

ANCA

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues. To learn more, visit www.anca.org.

|

The post ANCA Chairman’s Statement on the Armenian Genocide Resolution appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

When Arev Melkonyan went to her first prenatal checkup, she felt invisible. “The doctor ignored me completely,” she remembers.  

Melkonyan was with a friend of hers, a friend whom the doctor immediately instructed to lie down on the examination table. After Melkonyan clarified that it was actually she who was pregnant, she heard: “Are you kidding me?” 

“The doctor thought I was maybe subjected to violence or rape,” recalls Melkonyan, who uses a wheelchair. 

Even accessing the second-floor gynecologist’s office was an insurmountable challenge for Melkonyan, whose examination was moved into a completely different part of the building on the first floor. 

For the disability advocate, wife and mother, these experiences underscored the frustrating lack of awareness of a basic truth: people with disabilities (PWD) have the same fundamental needs, rights and desires as other humans do—they just need accommodations to help actualize them. 

Melkonyan could have stayed quiet about her experience, viewing it as the perpetual status quo, or wallowed in self-pity. Instead, she became a proponent for change.  

In Armenia, there is a swift undercurrent in the world of disability rights, and the most exciting facet of the change is that people with disabilities themselves are taking the lead. In accordance with the slogan “Nothing About Us Without Us,” those with disabilities and their family members are starting NGOs and engaging in advocacy to make Melkonyan’s experience, and others like it, a thing of the past.

At the November 1 Seminar on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (PWD) organized by the Embassy of Finland in Yerevan, Melkonyan and other PWD shared their personal stories and perspectives on the pervasive issues facing them in Armenia. But the predominant message was one of hopeful perseverance. 

“When it comes to disability rights, we’re all rather new,” said moderator and advocacy coordinator for Finland’s Ablis Foundation Tuomas Tuure.

In 1992, for example, the now inclusion-forward Finland had zero accessible public transportation options. Today, all buses and metros in the country accommodate people with a range of mobility issues, and the country is implementing inclusive education initiatives which began about 12 years ago. But Tuure says he doesn’t expect to see his benchmark of its success – higher PWD employment rates – for another 18 years or so. Tuure said the key is to identify where the PWD community is as a society, where it wants to be in about 30 years, and then strategically plan policies and actions steps to help achieve those goals.

PWD like Tuure, Melkonyan and others must be intimately involved in this process, which is what Ablis promotes, with a focus on the developing world. According to its website, the organization calls itself “a unique actor, channeling funding to projects that are planned, implemented and monitored by people with disabilities.” Active in 83 developing countries across the globe, Ablis currently finances more than 20 projects in Armenia. 

Karine Grigoryan, a panelist, PWD and president of the Gyumri-based Agate Rights Defense Center for Women, shares Ablis’ vision. “We believe that in order for the rights of women with disabilities to be protected, women with disabilities should be aware of their rights, and they should be the ones talking about their rights,” she told the audience.  

One year after Grigoryan experienced a life-changing training in the U.S. for women with disabilities, she felt empowered to take what she had learned and develop a much-needed resource center for women. Founded in 2007, Agate is now one of the leaders in disability advocacy in Armenia and is heavily involved in capacity building, training and general empowerment of women with disabilities. In 2017, after enacting 50 programs and impacting more than 1,000 people, the organization was awarded the “Franco-German Prize for Equal Chances” at the Universal Rights Award Ceremony in Yerevan. 

One of Agate’s projects focused on the development of A Health Handbook for Women with Disabilities, a publication which included content on the sexual and reproductive health of women with disabilities. Published in 2013 with the support of the Norwegian Embassy, the book was criticized for being perverse. 

But this perspective did not faze Grigoryan, and it certainly didn’t faze Melkonyan. 

Vardine Grigoryan, a fellow panelist and representative of both the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly in Vanadzor and the Disability-Inclusive Development NGO, argued that all laws and policies must consider disability issues. Laws protecting the right to health, she noted as an example, do not fully protect that right unless they take into account the special needs of people with disabilities to access health protection. 

Grigoryan also underscored that PWD must therefore be involved in the policy creation process, “not as an exception, but as a norm.” 

When PWD and their families are not consulted, efforts to promote inclusion can often go awry. Good intentions are not enough, and nowhere have they been more destructive than in the field of education in Armenia, where the 2016-onward closure of special schools for PWD and integration into mainstream schools have been problematic.   

As Tuure noted, inclusive schools across the world encounter pushback for three primary reasons: 1) Teachers complain about increased workloads, 2) Parents of children with disabilities protest the discrimination their children face, and 3) Children are often “integrated” without appropriate support mechanisms. 

Unfortunately, Armenia has faced all three problems. Dr. Marianna Harutyunyan, Head of the International Cooperation Unit and Associate Professor of Speech and Rehabilitative Therapy at Armenian State Pedagogical University, offered a descriptive analogy for the situation. 

“You go to a very good, very expensive restaurant and you pay, but nobody asks what you want to eat. They just bring it,” she says. “This is what our government decided to do with inclusion reforms. They don’t ask the teacher, the parent or the child what they want to do, or what they need to have in their lives. They just bring the plate.” 

The end result has been a double insult. Many in the government feel they have done a sufficient job, while those who are most intimately affected are worse off than they were before. This is a direct result of the flawed notion that a mainstream school is “inclusive” if it simply opens its doors to students with disabilities. 

In reality, most schools in Armenia are physically inaccessible for students with mobility difficulties, few teachers have appropriate training to accommodate children with disabilities, and supportive devices – be they books in Braille, hearing aids or supportive chairs – are nearly non-existent.  

“I think it is just a mess,” Harutyunyan says. As a professional in the field, it is especially difficult for her to see how research itself has been neglected in the process of policy change and implementation. 

“If you look at the situation in the three regions of Armenia where the special schools were closed and reformulated into resource centers, many children do not attend school anymore,” Harutyunyan says. 

While policymakers thought that opening mainstream schools to children with disabilities would reduce the burden on parents by providing a local schooling option for their children, Harutyunan says the reality is more complicated. “Many parents are thinking, my child does nothing in this mainstream school, but when he was in special school, he went to activities, he had a speech therapist, a special educator was working with him, and he was doing really well.”

In Harutyunyan’s personal opinion, the choice to attend a special school or a mainstream school should be left to individual families. It also hearkens back to Tuure’s broader questions: Where are we now, and where do we want to be in 30 years? 

For Harutyunyan, the question is similar: “What is the basic aim of inclusive education?” she asks. “Is it academic or social?” 

The answer is bound to vary by family situation and severity of disability; people with disabilities cannot be lumped into one category. And that, again, is why it is so vital to include their voices in the conversation. 

Both Tuure, a person with disabilities, and Harutyunyan, a highly educated researcher and therapist, appreciate the model wherein children with disabilities have a special place within an integrated school to receive therapies or engage in learning activities. In this way, both academic and social goals can be reached.  

“The main approach should be to create opportunities,” Vardine Grigoryan concluded at the end of her panel speech. While PWD, for example, may not take advantage of their civil right to vote, to bear children or to attend mainstream schools, they should never be prevented from doing so by their inability to even access the polls, the doctor’s office or the classroom. 

As these opportunities slowly develop, disability advocates are working hard to gather their stories, ideas, projects and proposals and play an active role in the process of change.  

“We should not be treated as beneficiaries only,” says Melkonyan, now the mother of a beautiful daughter. “We are full-fledged citizens.”

Author information

Sarah Stites

Currently based in Gyumri, Sarah Stites is a wordsmith and traveler exploring her Armenian roots. With a background in marketing and journalism, she especially enjoys promoting and writing about the work of organizations connected to faith and human rights. She is passionate about literature, puns and couchsurfing, and immensely appreciates Armenian fruit and nature.

|

The post Disability Seminar Calls for “Full-Fledged Citizenship” appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

The recent success in Congress is plenty to crow about, but must not so consume us that we lose sight of other very important issues confronting Armenians. In this respect, the Amulsar gold mine, owned by a company named Lydian, is a prime example.

Recently, I was chided by a friend (whose experience and judgment I generally trust) regarding my, and others’ of like mind, positions and activities regarding the Amulsar gold mine that has raised quite a furor in the Republic of Armenia.

I profoundly disagreed with the points raised, but I think they should addressed. I will list them (in no particular order) and hopefully not miss any, then proceed to respond to them.

1- Oligarchs in the Republic of Armenia who own other mines don’t want competition and are supporting the anti-Amulsar movement, therefore working against Amulsar supports these corrupt economic actors.

2- Russia doesn’t want Western companies (which Lydian is) to get a foothold in the RoA’s economy. Like the oligarchs, and through them, it is supporting the anti-Amulsar movement. Therefore, working against Amulsar supports Russia’s efforts.

3- Amulsar is by far the cleanest, most properly set up mining operation in the whole country, it should be permitted to proceed and become an example and set precedent for all mining in the RoA.

4- Amulsar is setting money aside for a restoration fund to be used after the operation is completed to return the area dug-up to its pre-mining condition (or as close as possible to it).

5- The mine will provide some 10 years of local employment while it is being exploited. Depopulation being arguably the biggest threat to RoA’s security, keeping people in their homes by providing jobs is a priority.

6- The threat to Chermoog/Jermook, Armenia’s famed mineral water, hyped up by mine opponents, is incorrect.

7- The threat to Lake Sevan via the Vorodan/Vorotan tunnel – Gechood/Ketchoot reservoir – Arpa-Sevan tunnel is incorrect.

8- Those opposed to Amulsar are ignoring the very bad conditions at RoA’s other mines, thereby giving them a free pass to continue polluting.

9- ELARD’s (the company hired to review of Lydian’s environmental documents) highly critical report was revised under pressure. The earlier version is much more positive in its assessment of Lydian.

My responses:

1- Given the predatory economic system foisted on the former Soviet space by Western advisors after the collapse of the USSR, it surprises no one that this is going on. But, the unmitigable threat posed by the Amulsar mine renders this concern much less grave in comparison. Also, arguing that because something good advocated by decent, concerned people, somehow makes them complicit with bad people also support the same thing is simply not a sustainable approach to solving societal problems.

2- Like #1, this is hardly a surprise and it is not a valid argument for the same reasons as above.

3- It is true that Amulsar is the most properly run mining operation in the whole country, but the overriding concern is the damage to Lake Sevan that the mine’s seepage into groundwater will ultimately cause plus the recently revealed health hazard posed to the local population by uranium that is naturally occurring in the ground, a fact that has only recently come to light.

4- Appropriate cleanup does not eliminate the damage caused while the mine is being exploited. Setting money aside for restoration after mining is the correct and necessary procedure. But it is not a sufficient reason to permit mining to proceed under the circumstances.  

5- Ten years of keeping people employed versus long term health and genetic damage to those same people and their descendants and rendering the country’s main water resource unusable for an unknown, but very long, period of time: which is more important?

6- Indeed, the threat to Chermoog/Jermook, is negligible, remediable or even nonexistent based on my current understanding. Those opposed to the mine should not use this argument. It is discrediting to do so, even though the source for the water is relatively close, and it is a recognizable name that catches people’s attention.

7- The threat to Lake Sevan is very real, based on data in Lydian’s own environmental documents showing flows of groundwater in the area.  This, along with the uranium are absolute reasons NOT to proceed with Amulsar mining.

8- This is like arguing that someone who is suffering from an ulcer, diabetes and hypertension should disregard a threat that s/he will be exposed to if a toxic and/or radioactive dump is proposed in the neighborhood. There has been and continues to be activity about the RoA’s profoundly poorly operated mines. A documentary that came out roughly eight years ago, “Armenia’s Breaking Backbone” is a good example. That was around the time that an intense round of effort went into stopping the Teghood/Teghoot mine from beginning its operation. All the calls for better procedures were ignored. The mine went into operation, but a little less than two years ago, the tailings (toxic sludge left over from mining) dam broke, spilling its contents which flowed into and poisoned three rivers. Preventing new damage from mining is at least as important as remedying existing damage and correcting bad practices. If anything, perhaps a transfer of ownership can be affected giving Lydian control over one of the older mines that it can continue exploiting, but with modern best-practices implemented.

9- I want to see a copy of that earlier version of the ELARD report.

If this matter worries you (it should) and/or you just want to learn more, be sure to attend the public forum titled “Amulsar Gold Mine and Its Environmental Impacts” organized by ARF’s Aghpalian Gomideh of Burbank. Speaking will be Areg Gharabegian, who was an advisor to a former minister of Nature Protection of the RoA. It will be held November 20, 7:30 pm at the ACF Burbank Mardirossian Youth Center: 75 E. Santa Anita, Burbank, 91502. Be there.

Author information

Garen Yegparian

Asbarez Columnist

Garen Yegparian is a fat, bald guy who has too much to say and do for his own good. So, you know he loves mouthing off weekly about anything he damn well pleases to write about that he can remotely tie in to things Armenian. He's got a checkered past: principal of an Armenian school, project manager on a housing development, ANC-WR Executive Director, AYF Field worker (again on the left coast), Operations Director for a telecom startup, and a City of LA employee most recently (in three different departments so far). Plus, he's got delusions of breaking into electoral politics, meanwhile participating in other aspects of it and making sure to stay in trouble. His is a weekly column that appears originally in Asbarez, but has been republished to the Armenian Weekly for many years.

|

The post Amulsar: Counter-Questions Raised appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has teamed up with Hellenic, Kurdish, Assyrian, Christian human rights, and religious freedom groups to protest Turkey’s President Erdogan at his White House meeting with President Trump, scheduled for Wednesday, November 13th.

Groups including the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC), American Hellenic Educational and Progressive Association (AHEPA), American Hellenic Institute, In Defense of Christians, Armenian Youth Federation and American Rojava Center for Democracy are calling attention to a wide array of Turkish transgressions from its recent invasion of northern Syria to its ongoing crackdown against Kurdish communities, occupation of Cyprus, oppression of Christian and other minority communities, crushing of dissent, jailing of journalists, blockading of Armenia, and denial of the Genocide committed against the Armenian, Greek, Assyrian/Syriac/Chaldean and Maronite nations.

“Turkey long ago walked away from NATO, turned its back on the US and yet still expects to have a veto over US policy on issues, and that needs to end,” ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian told the Jerusalem Post earlier today. “Erdogan is extremely open about the direction he’s taking his country. And I think every aspect of our political system here in America, especially here in Washington, has woken up to this fact. But the last holdout is the White House. We’re protesting to help bring that to an end,” continued Hamparian.

The Trump-Erdogan meeting comes just two weeks after the U.S. House near-unanimous passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.296), which establishes, as a matter of U.S. policy, 1) the rejection of Armenian Genocide denial, 2) ongoing official U.S. government recognition and remembrance of this crime, and 3) support for education about the Armenian Genocide in order to help prevent modern-day atrocities. Representatives Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) led the House effort, while Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) are spearheading the pending Senate measure (S.Res.150).

The protest is set to begin Wednesday, November 13th at 12:00 noon at Lafayette Park, across from the White House.  The timing of the White House protest is subject to change based on the Trump-Erdogan White House meeting schedule. Following the meeting, protesters will go to Sheridan Circle, the site of the May 16, 2017 protest where video evidence showed that President Erdogan ordered his security detail and supporters to attack peaceful protesters, sending multiple protesters, police and secret service to the hospital.

ISIS Murder of Catholic Armenian Priest Should Be on Trump-Erdogan Meeting Agenda

Earlier today, the ANCA called on the White House to bring up the latest ISIS killing of Armenian Catholic Priest Hovsep Petoian and his father, who were traveling from the Syrian town of Qamishli to Der-Zor to review the rebuilding of an Armenian Catholic Church there.  According to news reports, Turkey’s attacks on Kurdish led anti-ISIS defense groups in Syria last month created a vacuum allowing ISIS sleeper cells to reactivate in the region.

“We look to President Trump to publicly press Turkish President Erdogan this Wednesday for answers regarding today’s murder by ISIS militants of a Catholic Armenian priest and his father, in a region of Syria that has fallen increasingly under the control of Ankara’s allies,” the ANCA’s Aram Hamparian stated following news of the murder earlier today.

Chairman Engel: “Rescind the Invitation to Erdogan”

Author information

ANCA

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues. To learn more, visit www.anca.org.

|

The post ANCA Leading Coalition Protest Of Erdogan-Trump White House Meeting appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

It is amazing the lengths to which the Turkish government went to include Istanbul Armenian clergy and laymen in its propaganda campaign.

On November 5, 2019, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Communications Office organized an exhibit in New York City featuring photos of the Armenian Holy Cross Cathedral located in Western Armenia, today’s eastern Turkey, near Van, on Aghtamar Island.

The opening of the exhibit was not only attended by Alper Aktas, Turkey’s Consul General in New York, but surprisingly, by several Armenian leaders as well as other Christian clergymen from Istanbul. Among the attendees were Istanbul Armenian Patriarchate’s Locum Tenens Bishop Sahak Mashalian; Shirvan Murzoyan, an Armenian priest from Istanbul; Yessayi Demir, Chairman of St. Kevork Church in Samatia, Istanbul; Mesut Ozdemir, Chairman of Dsnount Sourp Asdvadsadsni Church; Yetvart Ayvazian, Chairman of Sourp Krikor Lousavorich Church in Kouzgounjouk, Istanbul; Tamar Karasou, Director of the Turkish Branch of Sourp Krots Association; Aram Kouran from “Louys” biweekly; Chairman of the Board of Sourp Prgich Armenian Hospital in Istanbul, Bedros Shirinoglu and his wife; Turkish Minority Community Foundation Representative Moris Levi; Syriac Ancient Church Foundation President Sait Susin; American Greek Orthodox Church Archbishop Elpidophoros Lambriniadis; and members of the Turkish and Armenian communities. I am pleased that none of the clergy from the Armenian Church in the United States (Prelacy and Diocese) attended the opening of the exhibit in New York.

While it is understandable that given the tense relations between the United States and Turkey, the Turkish government would want to carry out a propaganda campaign in the US to improve its stained image, much less acceptable is the participation of the Armenian laymen and clergy as well as Syriac and Greek leaders. One can excuse the attendance of the Istanbul leaders given the fact that they are hostages in the hands of the oppressive Turkish regime. In the case of Bishop Mashalian, however, he may have come willingly, as he is one of the two candidates for the December election for the position of the Armenian Patriarch of Turkey. The Bishop knows well that any disobedience to the wishes of the Turkish government will cost him the seat of the Patriarchate.

Despite the strong desire of Erdogan’s government to carry out propaganda in the US, it failed to capitalize on this opportunity. Turkey spent a fortune to fly the 88 photographs of the Holy Cross Church to New York, pay for the rental of an exhibit hall in Manhattan, fly and accommodate over a dozen guests from Istanbul to New York City, and pay the expenses of making a film on the Holy Cross Cathedral, “The Hidden Monuments of Anatolia Coming to Light: Akdamar,” shown at the exhibit. Yet, the highly-paid US lobbying firms hired by Turkey either were not asked or failed to disseminate the exhibit propaganda to the American media. Secondly, the Turkish government did not think of delaying the opening of the exhibit by one week so Pres. Erdogan, who will be in the US this week, could attend the official ribbon cutting ceremony. In September, Pres. Erdogan was present in New York at a similar opening of the exhibit of the photos of Ara Guler, a Turkish Armenian, which was also sponsored by the Turkish President’s Office.

Here are the reasons why I consider the Holy Cross Church photo exhibit a manifestation of Turkish propaganda:

1)  The Turkish government has designated Holy Cross as a museum, not a church, allowing Armenian liturgy to be performed only once a year by special permission. Much more important than organizing an exhibition in New York would have been the designation of the Holy Cross edifice as a church, not a museum. What are the Armenian and other clergymen doing celebrating the exhibit of a museum? If they had any guts, they would have refused to attend the exhibit until the museum is designated as a church which was completed in 921 AD, under the sponsorship of Armenian King Gagik Ardsruni. Visitors have even to pay a fee to enter “the museum.”

2)  After the Holy Cross Cathedral was repaired in 2007, the Turkish government did not allow a cross to be placed on the dome of the church, giving the excuse that the cross was too heavy for the dome. Finally, after much criticism, in 2010 the Turkish government allowed a cross to be placed atop the Holy Cross Cathedral.

3)  The Turkish government turkified the name of the island by changing it from Aghtamar to Akdamar (which means “White vein” in Turkish).

4)  In his remarks, Bishop Mashalian praised Pres. Erdogan for organizing the exhibit in New York: “Under the leadership of the president’s vision, special attention and interest was shown in the Akdamar Church…. This is a cultural initiative to overcome the difficulties of communication between the Turkish and Armenian peoples, as well as a bridge to a better future and understanding based on goodwill.”

5)  Chairman of the Board of Sourp Prgich Armenian Hospital in Istanbul Bedros Shirinoglu stated that “President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has made great efforts for minority communities…. We would like to express our gratitude to him for all his help and to the {President’s] Communications Office for this exhibition.

6)  American Greek Orthodox Church Archbishop Elpidophoros Lambriniadis reinforced the Turkish propaganda by underlining the significance of the photos at the exhibition in terms of showing the importance attached to the Christian minority in Turkey, saying: “Turkey is going in the right direction and it is good to tell the whole world about this.”

7)  Pres. Erdogan proudly told the Turkish media last week that 17 representatives of Turkish minority groups are in New York at this time for the photo exhibit of the “Akdamar Church.”

If the Turkish government was truly sincere in promoting the Armenian Church in Aghtamar, why did it allow a group of Azeris recently to visit the church and claim it to be a Caucasian Albanian Christian church? This is the usual lie that the Azeri government uses to describe all historic Armenian churches in Azerbaijan. The Azeri visitors displayed inside the Holy Cross Church the Azeri and Turkish flags with an “Azeri priest” claiming to say prayers. In a statement made outside the front door of the church, an Azeri representative accused Armenians of invading Azerbaijan and committing vandalism. The Turkish government should apologize to Armenians for allowing the perpetration of such a gross lie!

Author information

Harut Sassounian

California Courier Editor

Harut Sassounian is the publisher of The California Courier, a weekly newspaper based in Glendale, Calif. He is the president of the United Armenian Fund, a coalition of the seven largest Armenian-American organizations. He has been decorated by the president and prime minister of the Republic of Armenia, and the heads of the Armenian Apostolic and Catholic churches. He is also the recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

|

The post Armenians Fly from Istanbul to New York To Participate in Turkish Propaganda appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

YEREVAN—The Armenian government has condemned the murders of two Armenians, including a priest, on Monday in Syria’s Der-El-Zor province. Father Hovsep Bedoyan, the parish priest for the Armenian Catholic community in the northern Syrian city of Qamishli on the Turkish border, and his father Apraham Bedoyan have died. The Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility almost immediately after the deadly attacks.

According to the deacon from the nearby town of Al-Hasakeh, who survived with minor injuries, the car was ambushed at a checkpoint by unidentified gunmen and shot at point-blank range before the assailants fled on motorcycles. The elder Bedoyan died instantly, while his son succumbed to his wounds during transit to a nearby hospital. 

The pair had been traveling with the deacon to the city of Der-El-Zor to inspect the reconstruction efforts of an Armenian Catholic church. 

These attacks mark the first targeted assassinations of Christian priests since the 2014 murder of Father Frans van der Lugt—a Dutch Jesuit—by the Al-Nusra Front terrorist group. Another Armenian Catholic priest, Father Michel Kayyal, has been missing since his abduction in 2013.

The murders were followed by a series of bomb blasts in Qamishli on the same day, targeting the Armenian Catholic church, an Assyrian Christian-owned business and a Catholic school, killing at least six people. No Armenians appear to be among the victims, according to Mkhitar Hayrapetyan, the Armenian MP who chairs the Standing Committee on Diaspora Affairs. 

The church which Fr. Bedoyan was scheduled to visit had been vandalized and substantially damaged by members of IS during that terrorist group’s occupation of most of the city of Der-El-Zor from 2015 until a series of offensives by the Syrian Arab Army and the Kurdish-led Syrian Defense Forces drove them out of the region in 2017. Der-El-Zor’s Armenian population, which had been present there since the city became the final destination for victims of the Armenian Genocide, had mostly fled.

The church, as well as other properties owned by the local Armenian community, is being renovated with the support of l’Œuvre d’Orient, a Catholic charity which has been assisting Christian communities in the Middle East since 1856. Vincent Gelot, who heads the Œuvre d’Orient’s mission in Syria explained to the francophone Catholic news portal La Croix, that the current project was aimed at reconstructing infrastructure to “facilitate the return of the city’s historic Christian community.” He also condemned the murders as a “premeditated, calculated, despicable act.”

Œuvre d’Orient’s global head Monseigneur Pascal Gollnisch went even further, pointing at Turkey’s recent invasion of Northern Syria for exacerbating the security situation. “It is the responsibility of all occupying forces to protect the safety of the local Christian minority,” insisted Gollnisch.

The Armenian Foreign Ministry’s statement also squarely placed the blame on the Turkish military occupation of the region for “the subsequent resurgence of terrorist groups” targeting the civilian population, including particularly vulnerable ethnic and religious minorities.

Last month, the Turkish military launched its invasion into northeastern Syria, dubbed “Operation Peace Spring,” with the stated goal of pacifying the region and resettling Syrian refugees. However, most observers suggest that Turkey is using this pretext as a smokescreen for an attempt to create a cordon sanitaire along its border and eliminate the Kurdish-dominated autonomous government there.

The United Nations (UN) estimates that almost 200,000 people have been displaced by the Turkish invasion, while eyewitness accounts of summary executions, beatings, torture, unlawful detention and kidnappings by the Turkish military and their proxies have received widespread attention. Kurdish groups have warned that Turkey is engaged in the ethnic cleansing of the area’s Kurdish population and replacing them with Arabs. 

Critically, the fate of 12,000 IS terrorists and their families held in detention camps across Kurdish-controlled northern Syria remains uncertain as Kurdish fighters concentrate their efforts on halting the Turkish invasion. Kurdish General Mazloum Kobani told the New Yorker last month that an estimated 10 to 20 thousand IS fighters remain hidden in cells across the region, some having exploited the Turkish invasion to free their comrades from captivity.

The Catholic Church announced it will be dedicating masses in Fr. Bedoyan’s memory across France this week. In a prayerful tweet, Pope Francis wrote, “I am close to Armenian Catholics of Qamishli in Syria, as they gather for the funeral of their parish priest, Father Hovsep Bedoyan, who was killed yesterday together with his father. I pray for them, their family, and for all Christians in Syria.” A memorial service for the slain father and son was held at the Saint Joseph Church in Syria on Tuesday. The Armenian government, for its part, pledged to continue its humanitarian assistance to the Syrian Armenian community. 

While some sources initially reported that both father and son were priests, the Holy See has since confirmed that only Father Hovsep was an ordained Catholic priest. The practice of addressing deacons and acolytes in Eastern Catholicism as “Father” may have contributed to the confusion of the elder Bedoyan as a member of the clergy. While Roman Catholic tradition requires priests to take a vow of celibacy in order to become ordained, the Armenian Catholic Church has been known to accept married men into the priesthood.

Author information

Raffi Elliott

Columnist & Armenia Correspondent

Raffi Elliott is a Canadian-Armenian political risk analyst and journalist based in Yerevan, Armenia. As correspondent and columnist for the Armenian Weekly, he covers socioeconomic, political, business and diplomatic issues in Armenia, with occasional thoughts on culture and urbanism.

|

The post Armenian Catholic Priest Killed in Syria, Armenian Community Targeted appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

NEW YORK, NY—On the first Saturday of November, scores of college-aged Armenians congregated in the hallowed halls of Yale University for a day-long event filled with lectures and panels on an assortment of topics. The ARS Norian Youth Connect Program (YCP), sponsored and organized by the Armenian Relief Society (ARS) Eastern USA, with a generous endowment from the Norian Fund, has become one of the eastern region’s most popular and versatile draws for young Armenians. What used to be an annual affair is now held twice a year—at Yale University in the fall and Columbia University in the spring, though these locations may change, depending on the interest of students at their respective universities, says Dr. Khatchig Mouradian, Columbia University professor and YCP program director and moderator for the last six years. Under his leadership, the program has expanded in scope, versatility and participation.

For the first time ever, a series of lectures were dedicated to various science topics. Generally, discussions regarding Armenian culture make use of art, literature, politics and history, but topics related to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) traditionally do not fit into the equation. Some students started expressing a desire to see their majors and career interests coincide with their Armenian identities; YCP heeded the call. The addition was an encouraging reflection on the importance of filling out the evaluation forms that are distributed at the end of the program. (They really do listen!)

The first lecture was by Dr. Vikrant Yadav, a post-doctoral fellow at Yale, who presented some of his groundbreaking research, concerning the storage potential of biological materials, in this case, proteins. Similar to how we store data in our computer hard drives, we can do the same in our “actin cytoskeleton,” he described. The title of Dr. Yadav’s “How much protein do you need to store all 7 Harry Potter books?” was a clever way to introduce an otherwise highly-abstract topic to a broad yet eager audience. That and a few quips about confusing biologists and physicists alike with his “biophysicist” label and how anyone could do their research, so long as they, too, have a $500,000 telescope laying around. 

After a granular deep dive into the human cytoskeleton, the next lecture zoomed out to space. The speaker Armen Samurkashian works as an aerospace engineer in the Armenian megalopolis of Los Angeles, but many in the room recalled his humble beginnings as a former YCP participant during his undergraduate days at MIT. Titled “Satellites and Space-Based Infrastructure—Why You Should Care,” his talk provided an engrossing overview of the many ways in which satellites have completely transformed our lives in the last few decades and the importance of being aware of them.

After a bout of shuttles and satellites and space wars, the program landed back down on earth, to (arguably) its core, at least, as it concerns Christians. Dr. Hratch Tchilingirian of Oxford University examined the precarious situation of Christian minorities in Turkey. He began by pointing out the very word “Christian” has its roots in Antioch (renamed Antakya), where being Christian today is met with hostility. Dr. Tchilingirian explained how a series of policies were implemented by the modern Turkish state, formed from the ashes and lootings of genocide that have disadvantaged and disenfranchised Christian communities, which continue into the present day. 

After breaking for lunch, a series of rapid-fire presentations followed by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), h-pem Armenian Cultural Platform and Oknooshoon project. 

The ANCA has long been a fan favorite at YCP. Programs Director Sipan Ohannesian spoke about the organization’s long-standing efforts in rallying for the Armenian Cause, including the recent passing of H.Res.296, the bipartisan House resolution that recognized the Armenian Genocide earlier this month. Ohannesian talked about the many ways in which students and recent graduates can get involved with ANCA, including the Leo Sarkissian Summer Internship for undergraduates and the Capital Gateway Program for those searching for career positions in the nation’s capital, as well as signing up for their Rapid Responder Program.

I was also fortunate to address the student body as the Assistant Project Manager of h-pem, a new online platform that presents Armenian art and culture in innovative ways, while enhancing cultural interaction among a global network of Armenians. In this horizontally-run initiative, it is vital that young diasporans get involved. They can follow h-pem’s social media pages (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter—all @hpemonline) and sign up as active users on the website, even becoming “ambassadors” in their local communities. However, the platform also serves as a space for budding creatives to pursue their craft(s). “We believe that anyone can submit their own artwork, photographs, videos and articles, because h-pem is not just for your consumption but your active engagement and contribution,” I told the students.

Nairi Krafian is the founder of Oknooshoon, a nonprofit whose aim is to strengthen the human-canine bond in Armenia with the use of animal-assisted therapy and reshaping of local preconceived attitudes on street dogs. The name “Oknooshoon” is a pun on the words “dog” and “help” in Armenian. After running through the organization and its accomplishments, Krafian noted that they are always looking for interns to help out in various areas of operation. She then called on the audience to get involved by spreading the word and following their social media accounts.

The scheduled programming resumed with a discussion of the “Dark Pasts” of Turkey and Japan. Dr. Jennifer Dixon of Villanova University presented some of the findings from her book “Dark Pasts: Changing the State’s Story in Turkey and Japan” which compared the altering narratives by each state (regarding the 1915-1917 Armenian Genocide in Turkey and the 1937-1938 Nanjing Massacre in Japan) from 1950 to 2008. She explained that while both states’ narratives started from similar positions of silencing, relativizing and denial, Japan has apologized for the Nanjing Massacre, while Turkey has continued to deny the Armenian Genocide. Dr. Dixon concluded that “international pressures increase the likelihood of change in official narratives, while domestic considerations determine the content of such change.” 

The next presentation was a panel discussion titled “Northern Syria: Community, Culture and Invasion” with Clark University political science professor Dr. Ora Szekely and Dr. Tchilingirian. Dr. Mouradian explained that the inclusion of this panel was brought on last-minute, following the recent events in northern Syria. The professors presented on the harrowing situation in Syria, including a discussion on the recent Turkish invasion of the Kurdish-controlled Rojava region following US withdrawal of support.

Dr. Szekely rewound to 2011 at the breakout of the war in Syria, which, she explained, that many Syrians take issue with labeling as a “civil war,” due to its sectarian connotations. She described the dizzying eight years since, which has ravaged the small country, leaving over 500,000 dead and a staggering 50 percent of its population displaced, either internally or as refugees, with an overwhelming majority (over three million refugees) in Turkey today. 

The complicated geopolitical considerations, tensions and conflicts that exacerbate an already depressing situation were further addressed by Dr. Tchilingirian, who touched upon the heterogeneous role of the Kurdish people, noting that the Kurdish perspective(s) on Turkey, Syria and their respective politics is not a monolith. Due to their dispersal and historical persecution in four different countries (Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq), some Kurds have internalized their victimhood and project slurs toward other minority groups who are even lower on the totem pole, namely Armenians. 

When asked by an audience member who would be the “best winner” among all of the players in this war, Dr. Szekely answered, “All of them have committed egregious war crimes.”

Realizing the need to digest the previous panel’s heavy content, Dr. Mouradian introduced the final speaker’s talk as a true “dessert.” Attorney by day, photographer of the Armenian Highlands by anytime-his-schedule-permits, Matthew Karanian is the ultimate storyteller. His latest book “The Armenian Highland: Western Armenia and the First Republic” was also the name of his talk. Karanian began by sharing the poignant story of Yaşar Kemal, the humble Kurdish man who saved Akhtamar Cathedral from Turkish destruction in the 1950s, using nothing but his wit and profound love and respect for historical legacy—a legacy that did not distinguish between Armenian or Turkish or Kurdish, but “human.” Yaşar Kemal saved Akhtamar, and “he wasn’t even Armenian,” he pronounced.

Karanian then went through a slideshow of some of the images in his book, framing each one with a story or personal anecdote. While he acknowledged that much has been destroyed in Western Armenia, so much still remains and needs to be preserved. “I do not want to have someone look back on my photographs 100 years from now as archival research,” he told the doe-eyed crowd. At this moment, the hall fell silent; one could hear a pin drop. The lesson of the story, as there always is one with Karanian, is that every individual can make a difference, no matter what they are up against. Indeed, that same conviction propels programs like YCP and keeps people coming back every year after year.

After a whirlwind eight hours of enthralling, thought-provoking, transporting discussions, the program officially concluded, but the conversations continued at dinner at Olives and Oil Restaurant.

Author information

Lilly Torosyan

Lilly Torosyan is the Assistant Project Manager of Hamazkayin’s h-pem, an online platform to engage young diasporans in Armenian art and culture. She holds a master’s degree in Human Rights from University College London and a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Boston University, where she served on the ASA Executive Board. Her writings primarily focus on highlighting unique facets of, and approaches to, identity, community, art and youth events.

|

The post From Science to Middle Eastern Politics: Another Successful ARS Norian Youth Connect Program in the Books! appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

WASHINGTON, DC – On the eve of a meeting between President Trump and Turkey’s President Erdogan, key Senate and House leaders slammed the White House for welcoming the authoritarian leader, citing Turkey’s repressive policies at home and recent invasion of northern Syria among the long list of Erdogan’s rights abuses, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

A consistent theme in Congressional remarks was the Erdogan-ordered beating of peaceful protesters in Washington, DC during his visit in May, 2017, with leaders rallying to defend the First Amendment rights of demonstrators who planned to protest at the White House.

“There’s a right that has to be protected — that’s the right of Americans to speak freely here in America and not ever feel as though they should be quiet or silenced because of threats and intimidation from a foreign government,” ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian told Washington, DC National Public Radio affiliate WAMU reporter Daniella Cheslow earlier today. “The law enforcement authorities are on notice and the world is watching.”

The ANCA is teaming up with the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC), American Hellenic Educational and Progressive Association (AHEPA), American Hellenic Institute, In Defense of Christians, Armenian Youth Federation and American Rojava Center for Democracy for the White House protest timed with the Erdogan-Trump meeting. The protest will begin at 11:30 am and will continue through approximately 4:00pm, after which it will proceed to Sheridan Circle, the site of the May 2017 attacks by Erdogan’s security detail and supporters.

Sen. Robert Menendez:  10 Critical Questions that Turkey has Yet to Address
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Democrat Robert Menendez (D-NJ) – for the second time in two weeks – took to the Senate Floor highlighting 10 issues that should be prominent in the Erdogan-Trump meeting, including Turkey’s purchase of the Russian-made S-400 Air Defense System, the commission of war crimes in Syria by Turkish backed forces, Turkey’s occupation of Cyprus, violation of Greek airspace, and efforts to turn the Hagia Sophia Greek church into a mosque.  Sen. Menendez also called special attention to the 2017 Erdogan-ordered attack on peaceful protesters, calling for the extradition of Erdogan’s security guards responsible for the attack.  “While Erdogan may not believe in the right of peaceful protests in his home country, but I hope that Erdogan learns his lesson that here in the United States, the right to peaceful assembly is enshrined in our constitution and core to our democracy, and I hope that President Trump clearly reminds them of this fact,” said Sen. Menendez.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen:  Erdogan’s Visit is a “Shame on the United States”
Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), in a 20 minute floor statement, condemned Turkey’s recent invasion of northern Syria, including Erdogan’s use of “jihadi proxies that include a lot of Al Qaeda elements, and they are committing gross human rights abuses, including what the Trump Administration has acknowledged are war crimes.”  Sen. Van Hollen emphasized the recent ISIS murder of Armenian Catholic priest Priest Hovsep Petoian and his father, who were traveling from the Syrian town of Qamishli to Der-Zor to review the rebuilding of an Armenian Catholic Church there.  Referencing U.S. House passage of H.R.4695 demanding Turkey sanctions (adopted by a vote of 406-16), Sen. Van Hollen called for immediate action on that or similar measures in the Senate.  He cited the importance of sending “a message to President Erdogan that while he may be going to the White House tomorrow, he does not have support in the United States Congress.”

Sen. Richard Durbin:  “Why in the World is this President Sitting Down with Erdogan at this Moment?
Earlier in the day, during an interview on CNN, Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) offered a litany of reasons for President Trump not to meet with Erdogan “from their decision to acquire Russian missile defense systems, which we think really are inconsistent with Turkey’s commitment to NATO, the complicity of the Turkish government in moving would-be terrorists around their territory, threatening the United States and its troops, the decision to move forward and to eradicate the Kurdish populations, a population that has been in strict alliance, close alliance with the United States for years and has seen many of their own killed in the process.”  Sen. Durbin noted, “you put all these together and say, why in the world is this president sitting down with Erdogan at this moment?”

Senators Ed Markey, Ron Wyden, Celtics Star Enes Kanter Rally Against Erdogan’s Crackdown on Free Speech
Senators Ed Markey (D-MA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) teamed up with Boston Celtics star player Enes Kanter and the Committee to Protect Journalists to call attention to Erdogan’s “crackdown on Turkish citizens, within Turkey and abroad,” introducing legislation which states that “it is the policy of the United States to support democracy, peace and prosperity in Turkey and to oppose the abuse of Turkish counter-terrorism authorities that target journalists, target political opponents, and dissidents and minorities including Kurds, and others who exercise their right to freedoms of expression.”  During a press conference, they called on President Trump to rescind Erdogan’s White House invitation.

Texas Republicans McCaul and Crenshaw Rally for First Amendment Rights of Protesters
In the U.S. House, House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Republican Michael McCaul (R-TX) issued a statement noting that he is “extremely concerned by reports of violence in northern Syria committed by Turkey and Turkish backed forces, including reports of possible war crimes. Turkey must end its incursion in Syria immediately.”  In addition to citing Turkey’s “numerous recent actions that harm NATO,” Rep. McCaul referenced the 2017 attacks on peaceful protesters, noting “it is imperative that all representatives of the Turkish government respect the United States’ laws, notably the right to peacefully protest. The American people will not tolerate visitors disregarding our laws and violating our founding principles on U.S. soil.”

Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) led Congressional calls on the State Department and DC Police to protect First Amendment rights during Erdogan’s Washington, DC visit, circulating two Congressional sign-on letters addressed to Cam Henderson, the State Department’s Chief of Protocol, and Chief Peter Newsham of the Metropolitan Police Department.  The letters stressed that “those who wish to assemble and speak out against the Turkish regime and its leader are free to do so peacefully and without violence from President Erdogan’s security detail.”

The ANCA encouraged legislators to co-sign the Crenshaw letter, which was forwarded to the DC Police and the State Department prior to the planned Trump-Erdogan meeting at the White House.

BACKGROUND:

On May 16, 2017, ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian videotaped the brutal attack of peaceful protesters by President Erdogan’s security detail and supporters at Washington, DC’s Sheridan Circle, across from the Turkish Ambassador’s residence, where Erdogan was scheduled to have a closed-door meeting with think tank leaders. Hamparian’s viral video showed pro-Erdogan forces crossing a police line and beating peaceful protesters – elderly men and several women – who were on the ground bleeding during most of the attack.  Voice of America video of the attacks offered strong evidence that President Erdogan had personally ordered the attack.

Newly released documents reveal there was yet another altercation, this time between Turkey Foreign Minister Cavusoglu’s security detail and U.S. Secret Service and the Metropolitan Police Department at the Turkish Embassy, in which two Diplomatic Security special agents, six U.S. Secret Service officers and one MPD officer sustained multiple injuries, with at least one taken to the hospital.  The Turkish Ambassador negotiated the release of two Turkey Security Detail members, with the whole group immediately taken to Andrews Airforce Base for their return to Turkey.

Nineteen perpetrators were indicted for the brutal beatings, which included 15 members of Turkish President Erdogan’s security detail, two Canadians, who reportedly repatriated to Turkey, and two Turkish Americans. All 19 defendants were indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, with a bias crime enhancement – charges of hate crimes – which carry a maximum 15 years prison sentence. Two of those indicted – Eyup Yildirim and Sinan Narin – pled guilty to one assault charge and served one year in prison.  Based on a plea deal, the hate-crimes component of the charges were removed. They were released in March, 2018.

On June 6th, with a vote of 397 to 0, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously condemned Turkey in response to the attacks, taking a powerful stand against Ankara’s attempts to export its violence and intolerance to America’s shores. H.Res.354, spearheaded by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), Ranking Democrat Eliot Engel (D-NY), House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and received the public backing of then House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI). On July 14th, the U.S. House also unanimously adopted an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Bill, championed by former Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman David Trott (R-MI), raising objections to a proposed U.S. sale of handguns for use by the very Erdogan security detail involved in the May 16th attack.

The May 16, 2017, protest in front of the Turkish Ambassador’s residence was a continuation of a demonstration held earlier in the day in front of the White House, co-hosted by the ANCA. As President Trump met with President Erdogan, human rights and religious rights groups were joined by representatives of the Kurdish, Yezidi and Armenian communities to call attention to the Erdogan regime’s escalating repression against free press, the Kurdish and other ethnic communities, as well as Turkey’s ongoing obstruction of justice for the Armenian Genocide.

Author information

ANCA

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues. To learn more, visit www.anca.org.

|

The post Senate, House Leaders Slam Turkey’s Abuses At Home, Aggression Abroad on Eve of Erdogan-Trump White House Meeting appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

I would like to begin with a few tokens of gratitude for Armenia’s Minister of Education, Culture and Sport, Arayik Harutyunyan.

Thank you for your boldness. Few would be so bold as to put forth a proposal which, for many Armenians, appears to attack our national language, literature and history. You have successfully galvanized citizens and members of the Armenian nation around the world in engaging with issues of education. In line with the principles of the Velvet Revolution, you have made such a ridiculous proposal that it has prodded Armenians everywhere into getting up off their seats and participating in civic life. For that, I am grateful. 

Thank you for your transparency and receptiveness. Through your interviews, you have revealed that you and your team lack the ability to come up with complex strategic solutions. You are honest enough to display this vulnerability to the public, presumably so that they might come to your rescue. You have revealed that you are receptive to the Armenian public doing your work for you by coming up with more robust and thoughtful solutions to the problems facing Armenia’s higher education. 

We are happy to oblige you, Mr. Harutyunyan. 

The reasoning offered by the Minister regarding the elimination of the mandatory requirement of Armenian language, literature and history in higher education was that students in Armenia receive sub-par education in these areas in primary and secondary education. According to the Minister of Education, Culture and Sport, the only reason the requirement exists is to make up for what the students may have failed to learn in primary and secondary school, through a repetition of the same material. 

By eliminating the requirement, the Ministry is kicking this crutch out from under us, so that we will be forced to increase standards at the primary and secondary levels. To follow the analogy further, if our current system is producing disabled students, the solution is to knock the crutches out from under us first and only then proceed to make sure our institutions can produce capable students? If we accept the Minister’s logic, then it seems they are neglecting the current generation’s needs. Even if we agreed with Mr. Harutyunyan that required higher education classes aren’t there for more critical engagement with these subject areas, but merely to make up for a flawed high school education, wouldn’t it make sense to raise the standards at the primary and secondary level first and only then consider what ought to be done with the higher education requirement? Taken at face value, Arayik Harutyunyan’s logic here seems backwards.

If we give the Minister a little more credit than this, and assume he has a higher level of intelligence than his nonsensical explanation suggests, then there must be more to his reasoning for eliminating the mandatory requirement for Armenian language, literature and history. 

There are those who want to suggest an anti-national disposition as the reason for the Minister’s decision. He has made it difficult not to at least suspect otherwise. For example, upon seeing an Armenian priest during his visit to a village school, he reacted with contempt and disdain, asking the principal, “What business does he have here?” Many perceived this as an attack on one of our national institutions and its representatives. 

Likewise, the recent Hoo-Zank Oo-Zank performance commissioned by the ministry was seen by some as anti-national. If the public’s reception of these events carries weight, then the suspicion that the removal of Armenian language, literature and history requirements is an anti-national decision begins to seem plausible. The Minister has insisted that his intention is actually to raise the quality of education in these areas. 

In fact, the Minister seemed to have revealed his actual intentions during an interview on November 6, 2019 with 1in TV. During the interview he says, “Let us allow the specialist to receive specialization at the university by completing supplemental coursework in their area of specialization.” 

This statement is telling. There is a prevailing attitude in Armenia regarding expertise and specialization, which focuses on narrow specialization suited for technical labor rather than producing well-rounded persons capable of engaging in informed decision making in a free society. The latter reflects the precondition for citizens living in a democracy, while the former is a reflection of the totalitarian legacy of the Soviet Union that reduced persons to mere tools of the state, operating solely in their area of technical specialization. When Harutyunyan says the universities must “give a greater place to the different areas of specialized, technological subjects,” he is echoing an instrumentalist/utilitarian conception of society that reflects one of the more tragic aspects of Armenia’s Soviet legacy, a view that is equally prevalent under the contemporary neoliberal paradigm. Whether he knows it or not, the Minister’s statements reflect a rejection of liberal and humanist principles essential to democratic society. 

This is precisely the issue with removing the mandatory requirement for classes in language, literature and history. These humanities subjects are essential for the cultivation of persons capable of self-governance. This is the literal meaning of the word kaghakavar (varel – to rule, kaghak – city), which has historically been the aim of university education. In the interview, Harutyunyan dismisses the public’s criticism of the Hoo-Zank Oo-Zank performance that took place outside Republic Square Metro Station by repeatedly stating that the relevant specialists need to give their evaluation. Again, this reflects a Soviet attitude, whereby the humanities were reduced to technical specialization and a government policy that did not take the opinions of the public into consideration. The humanist position, on the contrary, accepts that all areas, including areas of aesthetics, are intelligible and that a person with a well-rounded liberal education should be able to contribute to coherent discourse on such matters.

The Minister is correct in saying that higher education should not be a repetition of primary and secondary school, but the solution is to offer more at the university level rather than to remove the requirement altogether. 

For example, Armenian language classes can offer the option of taking Classical or Western Armenian. Another option could be classes in dialectology, which would, on the one hand, connect students to the world largely lost due to the Armenian Genocide, while on the other hand more deeply connecting them to their compatriots across the republics of Armenia and Artsakh. The study of Eastern Armenian at the university level can also offer a more advanced study of the language, so that Stepan Partamian can comfortably retire from his position as language police. 

Armenian history and literature classes can offer options varied by historic time period, genre and other categories. The policy can be changed so that students can choose topics like Armenian poetry, prose or plays. 

Even with the current classes offered in the mandatory subjects, university education in these areas should include development of research skills, critical discourse, free and open discussion in the classroom, written and oral communication skills and the ability to formulate arguments. All these skills go beyond any particular specialization. They are skills needed for all areas, including STEM, and are desirable for all mature adult persons in a democratic society. 

This requirement also supports the cultivation of Armenian citizens with a deeper, more dynamic understanding of their common language, thought and collective past. In an interview with A1+ regarding the Minister’s decision, Armenian Youth Organization Central Executive Member Kristine′ Vardanyan stated, “[understanding] the national is the foundation for understanding the global.” The study of Armenian language, literature and history is in a particularly unique position in this regard, for they can do both simultaneously, because all three of these areas have developed at the crossroads of Eastern and Western civilization, such that the study of the national could also provide an understanding of the global. At the same time, given the physical erasure of much of our culture and history at the hands of Turkey and the Ottoman Empire and the suppression of much of our culture and history at the hands of the Soviet Union, this is a time for each of us to search for a deeper understanding of ourselves during the adult phase of our education, not to confine it only to primary and secondary school education.

Again, I thank the Minister for moving us with his hoozank, so that we’ll engage in this public critique and offer our help. His actions signify a cry for help – a zank (bell/alarm). This hoozank oo zank of his should not go unanswered. He needs adequate individuals to aid him in shaping policy. And, while I hope he will not limit himself to listening only to narrow specialists, he can at the very least consider the humble opinion of this pedagogue, licensed by the Republic of Armenia, who also happens to have practical experience as a teacher in that country. 

Author information

Khachig Joukhajian

Khachig Choukhajian is a graduate student at Fordham University, currently working on an MA in Philosophy. He is an alumnus of the Teach for Armenia fellowship. From 2016-2018, Khachig taught Armenian History and World History at the Medovka Village Secondary School, in Lori Province, Armenia. He holds a Masters degree in History Education from Gyumri Pedagogical University.

|

The post Thank You, Arayik Harutyunyan: Heknank, Hoozank, OoZank appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

Home Again: Armenian Recipes from the Ottoman Empire
By Mari A. Firkatian
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2018
350 pp.
$64.00 paperback

‘Home Again: Armenian Recipes from the Ottoman Empire’ by Mari A. Firkatian is part Armenian history, part personal memoir, and part recipes given by her family and others from Armenian communities of Historic Armenia. 

The first part of the book gives a brief history of Armenia, including the 1915 genocide, and then moves into a personal history charting how the genocide re-shaped her family and started the long peregrinations that concluded with her nuclear family emigrating from Bulgaria to America. Those familiar with the Armenian Genocide will already know of harrowing tales of loss and deprivation and the seemingly random twists and turns of fate for those that survived. Told through the lens of one family, this personal journey stands as a poignant and bittersweet representation of that collective experience. The sharing of recipes and food then becomes a way to preserve culture and traditions and the connection to a people much diminished and a land lost. This is a book about how food knits the family, the community and the generations together, in sustenance, in comfort, in love and in commemoration.

There is an overview of Armenian culinary traditions and approximately 175 recipes across categories including: Appetizers, Salads, Soups, Fish and Meat, Vegetables, Pilafs and Dolmas, Desserts, plus Miscellaneous, with a glossary at the end giving English definitions. The recipes are those passed down through her family and those gifted to her, and they reflect a sampling of the depth and breadth of Armenian cuisine. In that sense, this is a comprehensive collection which offers recipes for many occasions and all tastes.

The recipes emphasize using local and seasonal ingredients with vegetables and herbs fresh from the garden where possible to create simple, yet memorable flavors. Family favorites include Medzmama’s Choreg (Easter Bread), Yalanchi Dolma, Cumin Meatballs, Mom’s Baklava and Tanti Varta’s Boreg. From others come recipes such as Luleh Kebab Aintabtsi (Grilled ground lamb and beef Aintab Style) and Tutmach Abour Malgara (Chicken Soup with dumplings Malgara Style). There are geographical and historical notes and stories from similar families interspersed within the recipes which provide context and anchor the sense of connection with previous generations and the maintenance of traditions. In a similar vein there are instructions on how to make Madzoon (Armenian Yogurt), how to pick and prepare grape leaves and how to make and serve Armenian coffee, amongst others.

It is probably true that most immigrants find the food of their homeland nurturing in a way nothing else can ever replace; especially, for some people, it may be the best, or at times the only way they can find and know they are ‘home.’ For immigrants and the descendants of immigrants (as we all must be), this is a wonderful compendium of recipes and history which acknowledges that cooking has to come from the heart, and understands that food is not simply nourishment for the body, but does—and must—also nourish the soul. 

Author information

Regina McLennan

Born in Connecticut, Regina McLennan is an artist now living and working in London, England. She holds two art degrees: a BFA from University of Connecticut and an MFA from Hunter College, NYC, She is also a Licentiate of the College of Practical Homeopathy, London.

|

The post Book Review: Home Again: Armenian Recipes from the Ottoman Empire appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

PARAMUS, NJ–Peter Kougasian, Esq., former Armenian Missionary Association of America (AMAA) Board Member and Vice President and a longtime active member of the Armenian Evangelical Church in New York City, was honored on September 27 by the New York City District Attorney’s (DA) Office at a celebration of his 40 years of service as an Assistant District Attorney and as “an extraordinary human being.”

Kougasian was elected a member of the AMAA Board in 1996, serving during that time as Vice President and as Chairman of the Armenia Committee. He also served as Moderator of the Armenian Evangelical Church of New York for many years. He is a long-time member of the New York City (NYC) Bar Association serving as former Vice President, former chair of the Executive Committee and former chair of the NYC Bar Association delegation to the House of Delegates of the New York State Bar.

“We congratulate our dear friend Peter on this very prestigious honor,” said Zaven Khanjian, AMAA Executive Director/CEO. “His service to the AMAA is founded on the same principles that he has come to be known for in his profession – loyalty, dedication, devotion, service and commitment.”

Peter’s former colleagues and many friends were present at the standing room only celebration to unveil a bronze plaque that will hang outside of the Manhattan DA Office Training Center, which has officially been named after him. The plaque reads:

“The Peter M. Kougasian Training Center – Dedicated to Peter M. Kougasian, Assistant District Attorney 1979-2018. Executive ADA and Counsel to the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, Senior Trial Counsel, Bureau Chief, Director of Legal Training, Co-Founder Diversity Program, Conviction Integrity Committee, Ghostwriter Extraordinaire. In each position held during his 40 years as a prosecutor, Peter committed himself to justice, improving the institution that he revered, and serving the city he loved. He taught us the practice of law through his brilliance of words, his kindness of heart, inventive humor, and a touch of magic.”

The dedication ceremony, presided over by current DA of New York County Cyrus Vance, Jr. Esq., featured several notable speakers, including Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a friend and former colleague who, by video, praised Kougasian for his long career. Speakers also cited his friendship, mentoring, loyalty, wisdom, leadership, dedication, humor, generous heart, faith, pride in his Armenian heritage and his love of magic.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Princeton University and a Yale Law School graduate, Kougasian has been “a friend for all seasons, a forever friend, a formidable public lawyer by day and a magician by night,” according to Judge Robert Katzmann, Chief Judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and a forty-year friend and former Yale classmate. “Peter found a love for magic in college and performed whenever and wherever he could, even once before fellow amateur magician Johnny Carson. He has been called the ‘Amazing Kougasian’ and ‘Uncle Peter’ performing at many clubs in New York as well as internationally. Peter is a person of profound faith and has been proud of his Armenian heritage. He makes all of us better and brings out the best in all of us. As we celebrate Peter’s life today, we also celebrate his wife Beth and son Alex who are at the center of his life.”

“Peter’s retirement is a loss for all of us,” said his former boss, DA Vance. “His gift to me was to share the magic of his gift of writing. I am forever grateful for your years of friendship, Peter. I love you. We all love you. I thank Peter for being in our lives; you are someone we’ve all looked up to. The plaque will now hang outside of the Training Room. In the days and years ahead, feel free to touch the plaque and get a touch of Peter’s magic.”

Bridget Brennan, Esq., Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York, said, “Peter guided many colleagues with their careers and was a sounding board, trusted friend and advisor for us. His guidance has been invaluable, and it is fitting that this Training Room is named after Peter as he has trained and educated so many of us who are here today. You shaped our outlooks and our careers.”

“Peter, you are a man of integrity, honor and valor,” said Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor, who was a classmate of Peter’s both at Princeton and Yale and worked with him under the late Robert Morgenthau, Esq. in the DA’s Office. “I hope that every young ADA who visits this Center will realize the very high bar you’ve raised for us in learning and mastering our skills as lawyers and as human beings. It is fitting to name the Training Center in your honor, Peter, as your words, heart, humor and magic have touched so many. Your epic struggle with ALS has been an example for all of us. You have told me that your faith has buoyed and sustained you. I know that is true, but I see much power in your indomitable spirit. The Training Center is lucky to have that spirit at its heart.”

In a touching moment, from his New York City hospital room where he has been treated for ALS since November 2018, Kougasian spoke on camera to his assembled friends with the assistance of an electronic device.

“I am truly humbled and touched by this honor,” said Kougasian. “You know that I am passionate about training because it is through training that we convey the value of our greatest assets. Your friendship sustains me, and I am thankful to everyone who has made this ceremony possible.”

This article is a press release submitted to the Armenian Weekly and has been published to our community news section. If your organization has news it would like to submit to the paper for consideration, please email us at editor@armenianweekly.com. 

Author information

Guest Contributor

Guest contributions to the Armenian Weekly are informative articles written and submitted by members of the community, which make up our community bulletin board.

|

The post Former AMAA VP Peter Kougasian, Esq. Honored appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

November 11 is known as Remembrance Day in the USA, Canada and other allied nations and a day to honor and remember the soldiers who died during their service to their country, starting from World War I. But Armenians and other minorities in Turkey remember November 11 as the day of legalized robbery and forced bankruptcy by the Turkish government during World War II. 

The Wealth Tax legislation was passed on November 11, 1942, imposing arbitrary, unbearable taxes on Armenians, Greeks and Jews living in Turkey, not based on their income, but on their known or ‘imagined’ assets. The result was economic destruction of the remaining minorities in Turkey and complete transfer of wealth, production and economic activity from the minorities to the Turks, effectively ‘nationalization of the economy.’ This article provides a summary of the events surrounding the legislation, making use of memoirs of some Armenian families who suffered the consequences, as well as articles written by Turkish sources such as investigative author and historian Sait Cetinoglu and Istanbul Tax Office accountant at the time, one of the implementers of the legislation, Faik Okte.

The justification for the wealth tax was to prevent profiteering and black-market riches created during the war conditions. For a few months before the legislation, the Turkish media continuously published articles of wealthy minority opportunists and caricatures of ‘black market Jews’. But the government saw this situation as an opportunity to ‘eliminate’ minorities from the economy. The Prime Minister Sukru Saracoglu explained the government policy in a speech in August 1942: ‘We are Turks and Turkists forever. We do not wish for the dominance of any palace, class or capital. We just want to ensure the dominance of the Turkish nation.’ The legislation proposed to tax people based on their ethnic identity and religion. People were labeled Muslim, Non-Muslim and Converted (Donme). Donme people were Jews, mostly from Thessaloniki, who had converted to Muslim Turks. The non-Muslims were further classified as Armenian, Greek and Jewish and taxed according to their ethnicity. Armenians were taxed the most, at 232 percent of their assessed wealth, Jews at 179 percent, Greeks at 156 percent and Muslim Turks only at 4.94 percent. Faik Okte writes that some Turks rejoiced, thanked God and sacrificed animals upon hearing the low tax percentage for them, which also meant that they would be able to buy the assets of the non-Muslims at auctions at ridiculously low prices. 

On November 11, 1942, Parliament passed the wealth tax legislation without any debate. It proposed to establish tax assessment commissions, members of which were all Turks, mostly businessmen and merchants competing with Armenians, Jews and Greeks, obviously to benefit the most from the bankruptcy of the minorities. There could be no objection or appeal to the assessed tax, with a deadline of 15 days to pay the assessed tax in cash. At the end of 15 days, the remaining assets of the persons incapable of paying the assessed tax would be auctioned off for non-payment, and the person would be sent to labor camps in eastern Turkey in order ‘to pay his debt by physically working.’ These labor camps were established for road, railroad and tunnel construction projects, by breaking stones from rocky mountains under deplorable working and living conditions, sleeping in tents in freezing weather with minimal food and water.

The tax assessment commissions finished their work by December 1942. About 87 percent of the assessed taxes were for non-Muslims, seven percent for Muslim Turks and the remaining six percent for non-citizen foreigners. There are anecdotes of tax assessment commission members deciding the fate of Armenian and Greeks by throwing ‘heads or tails’ coins, to insert how many zeros on their assets and wealth taxes. Some of these commission members were known for their hatred for Armenians, who were the children of the Armenian Genocide perpetrators, continuing the destruction of the remaining Armenians. In January 1943, thousands of houses, shops, flats, apartment buildings, factories, machinery and equipment changed hands from Armenians, Greeks and Jews to Turks and Turkish institutions. Turks grabbed about 67 percent of the real estate, and the Turkish state got about 30 percent. Most of the valuable real estate, designed and built by Armenian and Greek architects and owned by minorities on the main thoroughfare of Istiklal Caddesi, formerly Rue du Pera, changed ownership during this time.

Toward the end of January 1943, auctions started to liquidate remaining assets of the minorities. The auctioned assets were not only house contents such as furniture and carpets. Among the heart-wrenching stories, a police officer ripped a rocking horse toy from the hands of a seven-year old Armenian girl, ignoring her cries and pleas. The wheelchair of a disabled Armenian old lady was removed after she was unceremoniously dumped on a mattress. In the dead of a cold winter, stoves and even blankets were removed from homes to be auctioned off. The dental instruments of an Armenian dentist, my mother’s family dentist, was sold based on the weight of the metal in the instruments. 

We should emphasize that even though the justification for the Wealth Tax legislation was to collect money from the profiteering businessmen, it was applied not only to the wealthy, but even to the poorest people, if they were Armenians, Greeks or Jews. There were thousands of low income Armenians such as street vendors, fishermen, laborers, porters, fruit sellers, janitors and salaried workers, who made up 44 percent of people forced to pay these taxes. People without any real estate assets made up 43 percent of the assessed taxpayers. To give an example of the irrational assessment and unfairness of the legislation, a retired Jewish man was assessed 1,530 Turkish lira tax, but ended up losing his flat valued at 24,000 Turkish lira at an auction. 

Between January and July 1943, 1,229 people, all non-Muslims, were sent to labor camps to Askale near Erzurum for non-payment of the Wealth Tax. Unable to withstand the harsh working conditions, lack of food and water, 21 people died. They would be placed in wooden boxes and buried in the fields or mountains without any funerals or clerics. One of the most unfortunate incidents is the fate of a Greek man who fell ill in the labor camp in Erzurum; he wrote a letter to his wife in Istanbul to sell the last piece of their family jewelry so that they can pay off their debt and he can return. The wife finally sells it, pays the debt to the tax office, sends the receipt proof to Erzurum for the release of her husband. Erzurum labor camp officials respond that her husband had passed away three days ago. 

The Turkish government ended the Wealth Tax legislation in September 1943 after the New York Times and other foreign media started writing about it. Parliament decided not to demand payment from still uncollected taxes at the end of September 1943, and people were allowed to return from the labor camps. A total of 314 million Turkish lira was collected, mostly from the non-Muslim minorities. This sum was equivalent to 80 percent of the 1942 Turkish state budget of 394 million Turkish lira. 

The Wealth Tax had absolutely no impact on reducing profiteering, wartime prices or helping the economy of the Turkish state. Its main impact was to legalize the plunder and robbery of the minorities and to transfer the minorities’ wealth to the Turks and the Turkish state. The minorities were ethnically cleansed by the Armenian and Pontic Greek Genocides during World War I, but the remnants were still a significant force in Istanbul economy and real estate. The Wealth Tax served the purpose of economically cleansing the minorities during World War II.   

Author information

Raffi Bedrosyan

Raffi Bedrosyan is a civil engineer, writer and a concert pianist, living in Toronto. Proceeds from his concerts and CDs have been donated to the construction of school, highways, and water and gas distribution projects in Armenia and Karabakh—projects in which he has also participated as a voluntary engineer. Bedrosyan was involved in organizing the Surp Giragos Diyarbakir/Dikranagerd Church reconstruction project. His many articles in English, Armenian and Turkish media deal with Turkish-Armenian issues, Islamized hidden Armenians and the history of thousands of Armenian churches left behind in Turkey after 1915. He gave the first Armenian piano concert in the Surp Giragos Church since 1915, most recently at the 2015 Genocide Centenary Commemoration. He is the founder of Project Rebirth, which helps Islamized Armenians return to their original Armenian roots, language and culture. He has appeared as a keynote speaker at numerous international conferences related to human rights, genocide studies and Armenian issues.

|

The post The 1942 Wealth Tax Disaster of Turkey appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

LOWELL, Mass.—Hundreds of supporters of the Armenian National Committee of America-Eastern Region (ANCA-ER) honored community leaders and grassroots activists whose tireless efforts led to this month’s House passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.296) at its 13th annual banquet.

“This is a game we are going to win,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian during his remarks at the University of Massachusetts Lowell Inn and Conference Center on Saturday evening. “You will know that we have won the end of this battle when it is inconceivable that an American president or even a member of Congress will engage in genocide denial.” Hamparian declared that the ANCA’s next course of action is delivering a genocide resolution to the Senate floor for a vote.

ANCA Leo Sarkisian summer intern Mary Galstian opened the program with the singing of the Star Spangled Banner and the Armenian national anthem. Galstian was then joined by four of her colleagues on-stage for their work with the ANCA leading up to H.Res.296. “During the internship, the interns passed four pro-Armenia, anti-Azerbaijan amendments,” explained ANCA Program Director Sipan Ohannesian, adding that the interns returned to Washington, DC to support the delivery of the resolution to the House floor. “We were all in the US Capitol three days days in a row, knocked on every single office, visited them three times and got the Resolution passed,” recalled Ohannesian. The interns are among hundreds who have advanced their careers through the ANCA’s leadership programs; currently, 60 alumni are staffers on Capitol Hill working for members of Congress. Even Mistress of Ceremonies Heather Krafian was a former ANCA intern and fondly recalled her experiences on the hill during her formal remarks.

This banquet is one of the largest events of the year for the ANCA-ER. This year, the organization honored Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Dr. Taner Akcam with the Freedom Award and brothers Aram, Armen and Ara Jeknavorian with the Vahan Cardashian Award.

“Not recognizing the Armenian Genocide is a stain on our human rights record,” said Congressman Jim McGovern after being presented with the Freedom Award and greeted with roaring applause from the crowd. “If we’re going to sacrifice the truth and turn our back on a human rights atrocity because there’s business to be had or there’s some strategic military consideration that we want from another country, then we lose all moral authority to speak about human rights wherever they exist,” said the Congressman, hinting at US-Turkey relations. McGovern affirmed the meaning behind this resolution as being one step closer to preventing the cyclical crime of genocide.

As a native of the first Armenian community in the US, McGovern reminisced about being sworn into Congress in 1997 and attending the 82nd genocide commemoration at the Armenian Church of Our Savior in Worcester. “I remember that commemoration because the first several pews of the church were filled with survivors.” He described the harrowing childhood story of the last late genocide survivor, Rose Der Sahagian, who was trapped in a prison camp, forced to flee her homeland and escape to Russia before making her way across the world to Worcester, Massachusetts. He expressed his frustration with colleagues elected for office who based their campaigns on empty promises of justice for people like Rose. “If it weren’t for your constant lobbying and constant appeals, I don’t think Congress would’ve done the right thing,” said Rep. McGovern, commending the devoted ANCA team. “My only regret is that we should’ve done it a long, long time ago.”

Dr. Taner Akcam began his speech with a letter from an Armenian who addressed him as a brother. “We love you so much,” he read to a captive audience, “please don’t forget that your name will be engraved in the hearts of Armenians.” Sincerely apologizing on behalf of the Turkish people he earnestly expressed, “Every time you look at me and I see the love in your eyes and you open your hearts to me, I almost die of embarrassment. I am so ashamed,” to which the ballroom answered with thunderous applause.

“It’s humbling, but at the same time it’s embarrassing because what I’m doing is not something extraordinary…We should really try to create the conditions where truth telling is not something prize-worthy,” said Dr. Akcam in an interview with the Weekly. Born, raised and educated in Turkey, Dr. Akcam explained his internal battle as a “self-critical process” when speaking about his initial acceptance of the Genocide. There was an overwhelming sense of gratitude from members of the Armenian community on Saturday night, many of whom waited in line to shake his hand and personally thank him for speaking out against his native government and its continuing denialist campaign.

Muriel “Mimi” Parseghian, chair of the Silent Auction committee, emotionally introduced and recognized the Jeknavorian brothers for their staunch commitment to their service to Hai Tad. Following in their parents’ footsteps, the brothers have actively served as longtime members of organizations including the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), ANC Merrimack Valley, the Armenian church and numerous genocide and veterans committees. They are also alumni of the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF). Together, the Jeknavorians reflected on their experiences in the community with a photo presentation, featuring old family photographs.

Throughout the evening, an overall sense of responsibility was instilled among attendees, many of whom are descendants of genocide survivors. “We turned the page on this,” said Hamparian to a roaring, inspired room. “We’re not going back. We’re going forward. We do not bow. We do not bend. We do not break.”

Author information

Kristina Ayanian

Kristina Ayanian is a recent graduate of Bentley University with a double major in finance and global studies and a minor in corporate communications. She was a reporter for ABC's Teen Kids News, whose episode interviewing Prince Edward of England was nominated for the 2014 Emmy's. She enjoys performing and has been invited to sing and play piano at Carnegie Hall.

|

The post The Fight for a Right: ANCA-ER Dedicates Annual Banquet to Genocide Resolution appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

WASHINGTON, DC – Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Robert Menendez (D-NJ) asked for a “unanimous consent” vote to immediately adopt the Armenian Genocide Resolution (S.Res.150), the Senate version of the resolution the House adopted 405 to 11, establishing ongoing American remembrance of this crime, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

Sen. Menendez took to the floor an hour after Turkey’s President Erdogan appearance in a joint White House press conference with President Trump, during which Erdogan attacked U.S. House passage of Armenian Genocide Resolution, noting that this vote “hurt deeply the Turkish nation.” Erdogan asserted that Turkey has “nothing to hide” and that the matter should be left to historians. “I believe the Senate will take the United States out of this vicious cycle,” said Erdogan.

Sen. Menendez sent a clear and resounding message to President Erdogan that while he is being welcomed to the U.S. by President Trump, he does not get to continue his gag-rule on U.S. foreign policy.

“I ask unanimous consent that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 150 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration. I further ask that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate,” said Menendez.  The “unanimous consent” request, if unopposed, would allow for an immediate Senate vote on a resolution.

Opposing the measure was South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham, who, in his remarks, cited his recent meeting with Erdogan as the reason to not pass the Senate resolution saying that in view of the current crisis in Syria, as well as discussions with Turkey on its purchase of Russian weapons, the Senate should not move forward with the affirmation of the Armenian Genocide.

“Are we so afraid to stand up to history and the truth? Are we so afraid about Turkey?” asked Menendez in response to Graham’s opposition.

“Who’s the superpower? Who’s the superpower? I’m beginning to wonder. Because every time Turkey threatens to do something, we cower. Well, as far as I’m concerned, they don’t get to dictate the views of the Congress of the United States. They don’t get to dictate the views of this Senate,” added Menendez, saying the he “will prick the conscience of the Senate and to ultimately reveal who supports recognizing the Armenian Genocide and who does not? Otherwise these words about never again, they’re just hollow.”

ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian welcomed Sen. Menendez’s actions, noting, “As much as he might like – as much President Trump may have led him to believe – Recep Erdogan doesn’t get a vote in the U.S. Senate.  The ANCA hails Sen. Menendez’s call for immediate passage of the Armenian Genocide Resolution – a powerful rebuke to Erdogan’s century-long obstruction of justice.  It’s clear – in the wake of near-unanimous, bipartisan U.S. House passage H.Res.296 – that the Senate would also pass this resolution overwhelmingly. Senator Graham knows this and – understanding that this would further isolate the Trump Administration – is blocking his colleagues from an up-or-down vote on this measure. If Senator Graham has a problem with S.Res.150 he should vote against it, not prevent his Senate colleagues from voting their conscience on this human rights measure,” added Hamparian.

Led by Senator Menendez and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), the Armenian Genocide Resolution (S.Res.150) currently has over 25 cosponsors, with four Senators—Michael Bennet (D-CO), Bob Casey (D-PA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Jackie Rosen (D-NV) – registering their support during Erdogan’s visit to Washington DC.

President Trump and President Erdogan met for some four hours at the White House prior to the press conference, with Armenian, Hellenic, Kurdish, and religious freedom groups protesting throughout.  The protest was organized by the ANCA, in cooperation with the American Hellenic Educational and Progressive Association (AHEPA), Hellenic American Leadership Council, American Hellenic Institute, In Defense of Christians, Armenian Youth Federation and American Rojava Center for Democracy – all calling attention to a wide array Turkish transgressions from Ankara’s recent invasion of northern Syria to its ongoing crackdown against Kurdish communities, occupation of Cyprus, oppression of Christian and other minority communities, crushing of dissent, jailing of journalists, blockading of Armenia, and denial of the Genocide committed against the Armenian, Greek, Assyrian/Syriac/Chaldean and Maronite nations. Maryland Congressman John Sarbanes (D-MD) was on hand to support the protesters.

“Two years ago, Erdogan’s visit to DC was defined by foreign goons attacking and beating US citizens on American soil,” said AYF Washington Ani Chapter’s Nareg Kuyumjian.  “Today, the foreign dictator was welcomed by hundreds of protesters organized by the AYF in coalition with a broad diversity of allies rallying around the permanent recognition of the Armenian Genocide in the House with H.Res.296. We will continue to build a movement around the momentum created with the passing of H.Res.296 to put an end to authoritarian oppression and genocide around the world.”

Earlier in the day, a small group of AYF and HALC members confronted Erdogan’s motorcade on its way to the White House.

Hellenic American Leadership Council Executive Director Endy Zemenides noted “As an American, I am very discouraged that President Trump would set aside both American interests and values to roll out the red carpet for Erdogan.  At the same time, I am encouraged by the diverse alliance of Americans who combined forces to protest in favor of those values and interests.”

The protest was cast live on the ANCA Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube Channels.

U.S. Secret Service and Metropolitan Police were are high alert following the May, 2017, Erdogan-ordered attack on peaceful protesters across from the Turkish Ambassador’s residence, leaving many on the ground bleeding during most of the attack and send a dozen to the hospital.  One Turkish American attempted to instigate a riot during the protest – flashing the ultra-nationalist Grey Wolves sign – but was quickly pushed out by police.  Armenian and Greek groups went to Sheridan Circle, committed to standing up for First Amendment rights of peace protesters.

“In Defense of Christians joined the protests today to send a clear message to Turkish President Erdogan that we will not sit by and allow him to commit atrocities against Christians and Yazidis in Northeast Syria,” said IDC Executive Director Peter Burns.  “Congressional recognition of the Armenian Genocide was only the beginning. We hope that he received the same message from the Trump Administration during their meetings today,” noted Burns.

Author information

ANCA

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues. To learn more, visit www.anca.org.

|

The post Senator Menendez Calls for Immediate Passage of Armenian Genocide Resolution appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

YEREVAN ‒ On November 13, 2019, the official opening ceremony of the Zoryan Institute and AUA Center for Oral History took place at the AGBU Papazian Library of the American University of Armenia (AUA). The Zoryan Institute has equipped the Center with copies of its earliest, largest and most significant Armenian Genocide Oral History Archive.

“Housing the copies of the Zoryan Institute’s renowned Armenian Genocide Oral History Archive at the AGBU Papazian Library at AUA is a great honor for us. I am proud to say that AUA students will be involved in transcribing and translating the Armenian video interviews making the resources available to the English-speaking community,” noted AUA President Dr. Karin Markides in her welcoming remarks.

Over the past decades, the digitized collection has served as a resource of utmost significance to scholars, researchers, students, and filmmakers. Through the Zoryan Institute and AUA Center for Oral History, scientists and students in Armenia will now have the unique opportunity to access about 800 video recordings of interviews with Genocide survivors. Besides researching the materials, AUA students have volunteered to transcribe the recordings in the collection which will then be translated into English increasing their usefulness.

“The impact of this project is far reaching, and this next step in partnership with AUA will allow the world’s largest Armenian Genocide oral history collection, and the stories of over 800 genocide survivors, to be known to a greater, broader, audience of scholars and researchers,” noted President of the Zoryan Institute Greg Sarkissian.

During the opening ceremony the Zoryan Institute presented the animated movie trailer Aurora Sunrise. Prepared in partnership with the largest documentary film studio in Yerevan, Bars Media, the film tells the story of Aurora Mardiganian’s survival using her personal testimony from the Institute’s Oral History Project of the 1980s. Through this animated film, Mardiganian’s 104-year-old story will be accessible to future generations perpetually.

Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia, affiliated with the University of California, and accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission in the United States. AUA provides local and international students with Western-style education through top-quality undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs, promotes research and innovation, encourages civic engagement and community service, and fosters democratic values.

Founded in 1982, the Zoryan Institute and its subsidiary, the International Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies, is the first non-profit, international centre devoted to the research and documentation of contemporary issues with a focus on Genocide, Diaspora and Homeland.

This article is a press release submitted to the Armenian Weekly. If your organization has news it would like to submit to the paper for consideration, please email us at editor@armenianweekly.com. Publication is not guaranteed.

Author information

Guest Contributor

Guest contributions to the Armenian Weekly are informative articles written and submitted by members of the community, which make up our community bulletin board.

|

The post Official Opening of the Zoryan Institute and AUA Center for Oral History appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

As Armenians, we have a responsibility to ourselves and to our future to set the bar high. At times, we have succumbed to accepting mediocrity in our institutions. Some of this is attributed to a lack of resources or mental fatigue from our volunteer network. Other times we may be aware of lowering our standards, but are either unable or unwilling to confront the challenge. We must never compromise our vision because of current limitations. It is the vision that attracts community members and motivates us to reach new heights. This fuels sustainability. In its absence, we wander into a state of simply existing. Many refer to it as just “keeping the lights on.” It tends to fatigue those who are committed and limits attracting new resources to the mission. It can eventually lead to a spiral of decline. Thus we can see the relationship and necessity of real leadership. Leaders must enable others to advocate for the mission of the institution to sustain and thrive. It is not about egos and titles, but rather making a difference.

A great deal of attention has been devoted recently to what is perceived by many as a leadership crisis in the Armenian Apostolic Church. Much of the attention is focused on the corruption cloud hovering over the tenure of the current Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II. I would like to approach this subject from a different perspective. Much has been written about the impact of corruption from a financial and moral perspective. I would like to address the status of our church from a leadership impact perspective.

In our long church history, we have witnessed a variety of styles and experiences in our leaders. Through it all, the church has survived. Prior to the early 20th century, most Armenians lived on our ancestral lands, creating a somewhat homogeneous constituency from a geographic and cultural perspective. After the 1920s, with Armenian communities blossoming in the Americas, Europe and the Middle East, the needs and expectations became more diverse and challenging. At Holy Etchmiadzin, the Soviet control of the Armenian church from 1920 to 1991 somewhat masked this change as the Catholicos was limited as to what he could do in Armenia and to a larger degree in the diaspora. In fact, Catholicos Vasken I of blessed memory was the first Catholicos of Etchmiadzin to visit America. With the independence of Armenia in 1991, the Catholicos was in a position to address the revival of the church in Armenia and expand administration in the diaspora. With this euphoric evolution came changing expectations from Holy Etchmiadzin and the diaspora. After the passing of the venerable Vasken I and the tragic short tenure of the esteemed Karekin I of blessed memory, Karekin II was seated in 1999. 

The diaspora has an expectation to be inspired. This is a reasonable belief. But what they have received is unnecessary control and a leadership style that does not enable it to thrive. While the diaspora expected some level of continued decentralization to accommodate the obvious cultural differences, they had to deal with micromanagement and even what many would refer to as meddling in matters traditionally the responsibility of the Diocese. 

I can cite two examples in the last several years. One would be the drive by Holy Etchmiadzin to write and implement global bylaws. For many of the dioceses that lacked bylaws, the discussions were perceived as an improvement. For the American dioceses that have a 100-year history of bylaw development based on many western values, it created significant conflict and a residual feeling of being “strong armed.” Another example is the ordination of candidates to the Holy Priesthood—a responsibility that traditionally belongs to Diocesan Primate. Whether anecdotal or hearsay (primarily because communication is very limited), there has been a strong indication of influence on readiness and criteria candidates directed from Holy Etchmiadzin. The American diocese has a fully functional accredited seminary and a complementary infrastructure. The philosophical struggle in identity retention by enforcing strict compliance is flawed. The role of Holy Etchmiadzin should be enabling, inspiring and supportive. The current leadership shows little respect for the struggles of the diaspora—a group that is heavily relied upon to back Etchmiadzin.

Most Armenians are unaware or perhaps even uninterested in these matters. Unfortunately, our lack of transparency has conditioned the faithful to expect the minimum. This allows for “palace intrigue” to take place outside the public view. What our faithful really expect from their leaders is to address matters in the areas that affect them on a daily basis. Utilizing the notion that “one size fits all” as the best way for the diaspora to retain its identity is flawed and dangerous. Our communities throughout the world are well connected by a set of common values and cultural norms. The entire infrastructure is built to retain identity. What the Diocesan regions need is the freedom to address the challenges that are specific to their constituents and are unique to the diaspora. Who better understands those needs than the leaders of a decentralized decision-making process? Is that not the reason for a Diocese? Do we actually believe that the needs of the faithful in Armenia are the same as in America? Incredibly, simply raising the question brings out attacks that the traditional integrity of the church is being threatened. This type of defensive posturing is not helpful or effective. When will our leaders embrace the concept that adaptation and tradition are compatible and have in fact been a formula for survival for centuries? Given that reality, is control versus enabling really an effective leadership style? I think not. Critical thinking is the real failing of our leadership today.

An alternative approach is to stop trying to control where it adds no value. Focus on securing the retention of the attributes that keep us whole and allow the diocese to do its job in optimizing the impact of the good news of the Holy Gospel. This would enable our leadership the mental and physical bandwidth to address issues that would help today’s faithful connect to an effective church. These challenges are usually identified as either those internal to the institution itself and those that are societal in nature. An institution that stands still while the world evolves runs the risk of irrelevance. Of course, institutions like the church claim that they are the vanguards of tradition in a secular society. True, but what is tradition? Is it retaining those elements of importance that define who we are, or is it the absence of change?

My experience is that our church has resided more in the latter category. We are standing still in a rapidly evolving and somewhat dangerous world. For many the irrelevance has become their reality, and they simply vote with their exiting feet. Apparently, the response to this crisis from the Catholicos has been more control, less innovation and not to mention, little visionary thinking. This is a formula for decline. This is not the definition of leadership. It is not about personalities, but rather the lack of results. We are celebrating the 20th anniversary this year of the elevation of Karekin II to the throne of patron Saint Gregory the Illuminator. Many churches have been built and priests have ordained, but the leadership crisis at Etchmiadzin hovers over our beloved church as a dark cloud that hasn’t moved. We don’t like to talk about it. We like to focus on the positives, but look up. It’s there.

The opportunities for effective leadership are everywhere. Let me offer a few examples where the leadership void is felt and where the silence is deafening. One of the most controversial issues within the faith community today is the language of the Soorp Badarak. There are really two dimensions to this issue. One is the conflict of using the Armenian language versus selective applications of the vernacular of the diaspora. Another dimension is the practicality of classical (krapar) Armenian in the liturgy. I have a perspective that addresses both issues. Instead of allowing our people to languish (don’t ask those who attend, ask those who left), what if our church considered offering the Badarak in our spoken language—either Eastern or Western Armenian? It will retain the “core” but actually assist in parishioners learning the mother language for use in their lives. I am sure this will generate debate, but debating change is a sign of life versus the paralysis caused by fear of change.

The church is also a social institution and has a responsibility to bring Christian principles into the lives of our people. I have a question for all of us to consider. Why is the church so silent on the issues of domestic violence of women, in general and specifically in Armenia? This is a significant problem and a stain on our society, yet the church is silent. Why? This is shameful. The church should be the first to defend the human rights of the faithful. Is this an uncomfortable issue for a patriarchal institution such as the church? Perhaps Karekin II should invite women from the laity to the Spiritual Council to bring the church into the 21st century. For many faithful men and women, this is a major disappointment and credibility issue for the church. If the institution wants respect, then it should expect to offer it to all the faithful, including the countless women who suffer from this disgrace.

I believe the leadership crisis can be improved upon when the church begins to address the issues that our communicants live with. They are not looking for more control or aloof mandates. Those with authority have a responsibility to use that position for the good of the church or empower those in the church to do so. Preventing necessary change in order to maintain authority does not equate to leadership. Patronizing the Catholicos with accolades and protocol does little to help him lead. Those in advisory capacities should take this to heart and understand the impact of a leadership void.

Author information

Stepan Piligian

Columnist

Stepan was raised in the Armenian community of Indian Orchard, MA at the St. Gregory Parish. A former member of the AYF Central Executive and the Eastern Prelacy Executive Council, he also served many years as a delegate to the Eastern Diocesan Assembly. Currently , he serves as a member of the board and executive committee of the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR). He also serves on the board of the Armenian Heritage Foundation. Stepan is a retired executive in the computer storage industry and resides in the Boston area with his wife Susan. He has spent many years as a volunteer teacher of Armenian history and contemporary issues to the young generation and adults at schools, camps and churches. His interests include the Armenian diaspora, Armenia, sports and reading.

|

The post Leadership is not about control. It’s about enabling others. appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.

WASHINGTON, DC—Chaos broke out in front of the White House on Wednesday when a Turkish Embassy employee was seen flashing a fascist salute at a group of protesters demonstrating against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, provoking a near-riot until police intervened.

“Baby killer Erdoğan!” the pro-Kurdish demonstrators had been shouting. “Turkey out of NATO!” The man—later identified as Berkay Altinok—was seen arguing with a group of anti-Erdoğan protesters carrying Kurdish flags outside the White House. While walking away, Altinok made the politically-charged sign of the Gray Wolf, prompting several protesters to peel away from the pro-Kurdish rally and give chase across Lafayette Park.

Inside the White House, Erdoğan was meeting with US President Donald Trump, trying to smooth over heightened tensions between their countries.

“The gray wolf sign is not only associated with the Erdogan-allied far right Nationalist Action Party (MHP), but also with decades of paramilitary vigilantism responsible for pogroms, extrajudicial executions, and hate crimes,” wrote Dr. Aykan Erdemir, a former member of Turkey’s parliament, in an email to the Armenian Weekly. Erdemir said it would be “correct” to describe the salute as “fascist.”

One man was knocked down as police on horses rode in to protect the fleeing counter-protester. Protest marshals and organizers in yellow armbands ran to the front of the crowd, shouting at their fellow protesters to ignore Altinok and avoid clashing with the police lined up along H Street.

A protester also reportedly shoved Tuna Sanli, a reporter for Turkish state television. “I extend my sincere best wishes to TRT News reporter who was attacked by the enemies of Turkey during live stream in Washington,” the station’s Director General Ibrahim Eren wrote on Twitter. “We will continue to transmit the truth without fear, no matter which part of world we are.”

The incident evoked memories of a violent international incident in May 2017, when Erdoğan’s entourage attacked a group of Kurdish, Armenian and American demonstrators outside the Turkish Ambassador’s residence at Sheridan Circle. Eleven people were injured, and the House of Representatives unanimously voted to condemn Turkey over the incident. No one was hospitalized during Wednesday’s incident, during which protest organizers successfully turned back the angry crowd as Altinok slipped behind police lines.

The protesters had been riled up by an incident about half an hour earlier, when a group of young adults wearing Turkish flag hats lingered outside the rally. When approached for comment, they refused to talk to the Weekly. A group of pro-Kurdish protesters began to swear at them, prompting the counter-protesters to beat a hasty retreat while making Gray Wolf salutes.

Afterwards, the atmosphere seemed to calm down. Protesters danced in a circle to Kurdish music, and a group of women from the Nashville Kurdish community talked about the long ride home. “As refugees, we have a duty to do this,” said Shermin, one of the women. “I can’t imagine what the people are going through.”

Guy Stewart, an American who had fought alongside the Syrian Kurds against ISIS as a volunteer, told the Weekly, “As long as we draw breath, we’ll fight.”

Ömer Pacal, a protester who witnessed the scuffles, told the Armenian Weekly that he recognized Altinok as a Turkish Embassy employee named “Berkay” who “always” shows up at pro-Kurdish protests.

Altinok is listed as a media analyst and tourism and commerce expert at the Turkish Embassy in Washington since 2014 on LinkedIn. A photo caption from the Assembly of Turkish American Associations posted to Facebook on May 30, 2015 and an article in Brigham Young University-Idaho’s school paper published on July 5, 2016 both list Altinok as the Assistant to the Press Counselor of the Turkish Embassy in Washington. The photo of Altinok available on LinkedIn and the photo of him posted by the Assembly of Turkish American Associations match a publicly-available video of the scuffle, as well as footage obtained by the Armenian Weekly. In the latter photo, Altinok is standing beside several other embassy officials.

Altinok’s LinkedIn profile includes a copy of a letter of reference signed by Deputy Chief of Mission Aydan Karamanoğlu and dated June 12, 2018, claiming that Altinok “was able to handle the full load of our press office by himself for a long time in the absence of a Press Counselor.” A woman who answered the phone at the Press Counselor’s office said that she did not recognize Altinok’s name, but provided an email address to follow up. As of press time, the Turkish Embassy has not responded to multiple email requests for comment.

“This particular time, we have taken every precaution to ensure that we will be ready for them if they decide to attack us again, but so far we’ve seen a few very paltry displays,” said Lacy MacAuley, a protest organizer who had been attacked by the Turkish security detail in 2017. “We’re hoping that mainly it is our words that will attack Erdoğan.”

In the 2017 incident, Erdoğan watched as his guards and supporters broke through a DC police line to attack protesters who had been shouting “baby killer Erdoğan!” At the time, the Turkish Embassy claimed that the demonstrators were “aggressively provoking Turkish-American citizens who had peacefully assembled to greet the president. The Turkish-Americans responded in self-defense and one of them was seriously injured.”

While the protesters gathered outside the White House on Wednesday, Trump hosted a meeting between Erdoğan and Republican senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Jim Risch (R-ID), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Rick Scott (R-FL). Erdoğan defended his country’s controversial war against the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, showing the senators a video that linked the Syrian Kurdish fighters to a violent Kurdish separatist organization inside Turkey. “Well, do you want me to go get the Kurds to make one about what you’ve done?” Graham reportedly told Erdoğan. But an hour later, Graham blocked an attempt by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) to recognize the Armenian Genocide with unanimous consent.

“For far too long, U.S. policy was set in Ankara, exported to America and enforced by presidents, Democrat and Republican. That day, my friends, is coming to an end!” shouted Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) executive director Aram Hamparian at the rally, referencing what he called the longest-lasting foreign veto in US history. “America was muzzled. America enforced a gag rule for the better part of a century,” said Hamparian.

Turkey refuses to recognize the murder of 1.5 million Armenians during World War I as a genocide. During his joint press conference with Trump, Erdoğan denounced an earlier House resolution recognizing the genocide, instead promising to “establish a history commission.”

Graham echoed Erdoğan’s language, claiming that the goal was not “to sugarcoat history or try to rewrite it, but to deal with the present.” “I just met with President Erdoğan and President Trump about the problems we face in Syria by the military incursion by Turkey,” he told the Senate. “I do hope that Turkey and Armenia can come together and deal with this problem.”

Author information

Matthew Petti

Matthew Petti is a national security reporter at the National Interest and a former Foreign Language Area Studies fellow at Columbia University. His work has appeared in Reason and America Magazine.

|

The post EXCLUSIVE: Near Riot After Turkish Embassy Employee Flashes ‘Fascist’ Salute at Pro-Kurdish Protesters appeared first on The Armenian Weekly.