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TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER TO ADDRESS CONFERENCE ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE -DAILY
Hurriyet web site, Istanbul
24 Aug 05
Text of report: "A surprising 'yes' to a surprising invitation"
published by Turkish daily Hurriyet web site on 24 August
A meeting on so-called "Armenian genocide," which will be held at
Bogazici University on 23-25 September, will be opened by Foreign
Minister Abdullah Gul, who has accepted an invitation extended by
Prof. Ayse Soysal, president of the university.
Bogazici University announced that the meeting, which had been
postponed due to huge public debate it caused, would be held in
September. Meanwhile, another important development, which Prof. Soysal
did not mention in her statement, took place.
Soysal called Gul at the beginning of the week and asked whether he
could deliver the opening address. Gul responded: "I have to check
my schedule. I would be glad to deliver an address if there is not
a special event coinciding with the meeting".
Gul's decision, which was not disclosed before yesterday evening,
came as a surprise to both the academia and the guests invited to
attend the conference.
Responding to a question put by a Hurriyet reporter, Gul confirmed the
report and said: "The president called me and asked whether I could
deliver a speech. I said that I could. There is nothing that would
cause us to act hesitantly about this issue. Why should we bury our
heads in the sand? I also emphasized that when the meeting was put
off. There was no reason for postponing it. Our society may discuss
it without fearing anything."
This scientific gathering is open to all kinds of criticism
It has been formally announced that the alternative Armenian conference
at Bogazici University, which had been postponed in May, would be held
on 23-25 September, which confirmed a report carried by Hurriyet two
days ago.
In a joint statement they issued yesterday, Prof Soysal and Prof. Tosun
Terzioglu, president of Sabanci University, said: "Academic studies
conducted in our universities can be shared by the academia in
different forms. This conference will be a gathering where such studies
with an academic content will be shared. Establishments would certainly
not be bound by opinions expressed in a conference and such opinions
would be open to all kinds of criticism within an academic context."
The conference entitled "Ottoman Armenians," which was to be organized
by Bogazici University in May, was postponed after Justice Minister
Cemil Cicek said in an address to the National Assembly: "This is
tantamount to stabbing the Turkish nation in the back. I wish I
had not delegated my power to institute lawsuits as the Minister of
Justice." Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the decision
to put off the conference. He said: "Postponing this event due to a
statement made by Justice Minister Cemil Cicek makes no sense."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Hurriyet web site, Istanbul
24 Aug 05
Text of report: "A surprising 'yes' to a surprising invitation"
published by Turkish daily Hurriyet web site on 24 August
A meeting on so-called "Armenian genocide," which will be held at
Bogazici University on 23-25 September, will be opened by Foreign
Minister Abdullah Gul, who has accepted an invitation extended by
Prof. Ayse Soysal, president of the university.
Bogazici University announced that the meeting, which had been
postponed due to huge public debate it caused, would be held in
September. Meanwhile, another important development, which Prof. Soysal
did not mention in her statement, took place.
Soysal called Gul at the beginning of the week and asked whether he
could deliver the opening address. Gul responded: "I have to check
my schedule. I would be glad to deliver an address if there is not
a special event coinciding with the meeting".
Gul's decision, which was not disclosed before yesterday evening,
came as a surprise to both the academia and the guests invited to
attend the conference.
Responding to a question put by a Hurriyet reporter, Gul confirmed the
report and said: "The president called me and asked whether I could
deliver a speech. I said that I could. There is nothing that would
cause us to act hesitantly about this issue. Why should we bury our
heads in the sand? I also emphasized that when the meeting was put
off. There was no reason for postponing it. Our society may discuss
it without fearing anything."
This scientific gathering is open to all kinds of criticism
It has been formally announced that the alternative Armenian conference
at Bogazici University, which had been postponed in May, would be held
on 23-25 September, which confirmed a report carried by Hurriyet two
days ago.
In a joint statement they issued yesterday, Prof Soysal and Prof. Tosun
Terzioglu, president of Sabanci University, said: "Academic studies
conducted in our universities can be shared by the academia in
different forms. This conference will be a gathering where such studies
with an academic content will be shared. Establishments would certainly
not be bound by opinions expressed in a conference and such opinions
would be open to all kinds of criticism within an academic context."
The conference entitled "Ottoman Armenians," which was to be organized
by Bogazici University in May, was postponed after Justice Minister
Cemil Cicek said in an address to the National Assembly: "This is
tantamount to stabbing the Turkish nation in the back. I wish I
had not delegated my power to institute lawsuits as the Minister of
Justice." Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the decision
to put off the conference. He said: "Postponing this event due to a
statement made by Justice Minister Cemil Cicek makes no sense."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress