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PRESENT, PAST, FUTURE INTERESTS
http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/society-lra hos15277.html
18:04:55 - 22/09/2009
Interests that must shape our Present and a Past that shapes our
Future.
On 6th May 2008, i had to pick-up the writer-journalist-publisher
Ragip Zarakoglu from Heathrow Airport London and take him to the
House of Commons (British Parliament) where he had to speak at the
Conference entitled "The Armenian Genocide . Truth and Politics"
organised by the British-Armenian All-Party Parliamentary Group.
Seldom have i ever been so disturbed by the feelings which were
overwhelming me at the prospect of that meeting : feelings of repulsion
, anger and hatred . For my guest was a Turk and it was the first
time in my life that i had to shake the hand of a Turk.
Yet i was aware and had to appreciate that having been - repeatedly -
subjected to persecution , imprisonment and torture by the Turkish
authorities for advocating in Turkey the Recognition of the Armenian
Genocide , our guest - endangering his own life - had travelled
courageously hundreds of miles in order to participate in our
Conference and support our Cause.
He was what I would call " a good Turk" . He is a good friend now.
Recently it has been reported that the Armenian President Serge
Sarkissian has been shaking the hands of many Turks - none of them a
"good Turk "- has smiled at them, has hosted dinners , receptions and
football games , has been sitting around the same tables with them and
has held discussions and negotiations , for creating the much needed
diplomatic relations with our neighbour , for opening a window of
opportunities for each one of us , in Armenia and the Diaspora , and
for protecting the interests of Armenia in order to shape its Present.
Engaging in this bold , historic and temerous move , incurring
possibly the violent opposition of some individuals and organisations
and facing the uncertainty of future ratification of the Protocols
either by Armenia or Turkey have not been a deterrent for President
Sarkissian who has stood by his convictions . I presume that during
his encounters with the Turks , he too must have had moments of
"overwhelming feelings of repulsion , anger and hatred " ( as every
Armenian like myself must experience at the contact of a Turk ) but
these have been overcome with diplomacy , restrain and courtesy and
at the cost of immense sacrifices : all for the good of Armenia. One
must admire his courage and congratulate him on his hindsight and
his dedication.
Undoubtedly President Sarkissian deserves the Nobel Prize .
The time has come when we , Armenians , must unite and stand behind our
Leader , must use this given opportunity to express our own opinion ,
engage in positive dialogue , maybe advocate for amendments to the
Protocoles but ONLY with thoroughly researched documents and aiming
ONLY at the good for Armenia and not for petty personal ambitions
. That time is NOW.
These Protocols are currently under professional scrutiny by various
organisations and Scholars in Armenia and the Diaspora who are studying
and analysing each of the legal , political , financial , logistical,
diplomatic and cultural inclusions in their wording .
Some organisations have already presented their amendments and one
must agree with most of them : they will create the powerful impact
that will Shape our Future, based on our Past . But a very important
issue has been overlooked which can alienate dramatically the
countries , the parliaments , the governmental and non-governmental
organisations , the scholars and the individuals who, painstakingly
lobbied by various Armenian Organisations and Institutions , have
recognised our Genocide , have challenged Turkey`s anger and have
issued Declarations and Statements affirming that recognition : the
issue of setting-up a joint-committee to study the documents relating
to the events of 1915-1923. Such step will destroy the good faith
of these organisations in our integrity and will make them feel -
very rightly - mislead and deceived .
For the past 94 years we have told the truth about our Genocide,
we have produced proofs , images , recordings and documents , we
have interviewed survivors , we have created commissions and have
commissioned scholars , we have lobbied governments , parliaments ,
councils , scholars and individuals , we have erected memorials to our
dead , journalists have been killed for the truth , many of us have
been threatened , our borders have been closed , our churches have
been set on fire ... At last , our efforts of lobbying have produced
results : millions of inhabitants of the four Continents and almost
half the population of Europe have recognised our Genocide based on
the genuine veracity and legality of the documents presented .
How can we - NOW - tell these peoples and these organisations that
the documents which we have presented in the past to convince them
to recognise our Genocide , have to be reviewed by a joint-committee
? How can we allow ourselves to create in their minds the slightest
doubt on the accuracy of these documents and ask them to ignore the
former documentation and adopt a new revision? How can we afford to
loose their faith in us? How can we even convince ourselves that we
need a new joint-committee to tell us if really a million and half
of our people were butchered and if our land was taken from us ?
As much as one must admire the good-will created by this rapproachement
and contained in the wording of the Protocols , as much as one must
think of all the materiel interests that will contribute to shape our
Present , but i believe that we cannot take part and must not be part
of that joint-committee.
Let Turkey set-up their own committee to study their huge bulk of
documents : this will give them the best opportunity to diminish the
crime and falsify the texts as that page of their history is still
left blank . And they need desperately to fill it with the narrative
of good and glorious deeds by their predecessors.
Our own page of history has been written by the genocidal actions of
Turkey . Not a word can be changed . And it is the most poignant page
of our history, written with the blood of our people .
Odette Bazil Buckinghamshire UK [email protected]
http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/society-lra hos15277.html
18:04:55 - 22/09/2009
Interests that must shape our Present and a Past that shapes our
Future.
On 6th May 2008, i had to pick-up the writer-journalist-publisher
Ragip Zarakoglu from Heathrow Airport London and take him to the
House of Commons (British Parliament) where he had to speak at the
Conference entitled "The Armenian Genocide . Truth and Politics"
organised by the British-Armenian All-Party Parliamentary Group.
Seldom have i ever been so disturbed by the feelings which were
overwhelming me at the prospect of that meeting : feelings of repulsion
, anger and hatred . For my guest was a Turk and it was the first
time in my life that i had to shake the hand of a Turk.
Yet i was aware and had to appreciate that having been - repeatedly -
subjected to persecution , imprisonment and torture by the Turkish
authorities for advocating in Turkey the Recognition of the Armenian
Genocide , our guest - endangering his own life - had travelled
courageously hundreds of miles in order to participate in our
Conference and support our Cause.
He was what I would call " a good Turk" . He is a good friend now.
Recently it has been reported that the Armenian President Serge
Sarkissian has been shaking the hands of many Turks - none of them a
"good Turk "- has smiled at them, has hosted dinners , receptions and
football games , has been sitting around the same tables with them and
has held discussions and negotiations , for creating the much needed
diplomatic relations with our neighbour , for opening a window of
opportunities for each one of us , in Armenia and the Diaspora , and
for protecting the interests of Armenia in order to shape its Present.
Engaging in this bold , historic and temerous move , incurring
possibly the violent opposition of some individuals and organisations
and facing the uncertainty of future ratification of the Protocols
either by Armenia or Turkey have not been a deterrent for President
Sarkissian who has stood by his convictions . I presume that during
his encounters with the Turks , he too must have had moments of
"overwhelming feelings of repulsion , anger and hatred " ( as every
Armenian like myself must experience at the contact of a Turk ) but
these have been overcome with diplomacy , restrain and courtesy and
at the cost of immense sacrifices : all for the good of Armenia. One
must admire his courage and congratulate him on his hindsight and
his dedication.
Undoubtedly President Sarkissian deserves the Nobel Prize .
The time has come when we , Armenians , must unite and stand behind our
Leader , must use this given opportunity to express our own opinion ,
engage in positive dialogue , maybe advocate for amendments to the
Protocoles but ONLY with thoroughly researched documents and aiming
ONLY at the good for Armenia and not for petty personal ambitions
. That time is NOW.
These Protocols are currently under professional scrutiny by various
organisations and Scholars in Armenia and the Diaspora who are studying
and analysing each of the legal , political , financial , logistical,
diplomatic and cultural inclusions in their wording .
Some organisations have already presented their amendments and one
must agree with most of them : they will create the powerful impact
that will Shape our Future, based on our Past . But a very important
issue has been overlooked which can alienate dramatically the
countries , the parliaments , the governmental and non-governmental
organisations , the scholars and the individuals who, painstakingly
lobbied by various Armenian Organisations and Institutions , have
recognised our Genocide , have challenged Turkey`s anger and have
issued Declarations and Statements affirming that recognition : the
issue of setting-up a joint-committee to study the documents relating
to the events of 1915-1923. Such step will destroy the good faith
of these organisations in our integrity and will make them feel -
very rightly - mislead and deceived .
For the past 94 years we have told the truth about our Genocide,
we have produced proofs , images , recordings and documents , we
have interviewed survivors , we have created commissions and have
commissioned scholars , we have lobbied governments , parliaments ,
councils , scholars and individuals , we have erected memorials to our
dead , journalists have been killed for the truth , many of us have
been threatened , our borders have been closed , our churches have
been set on fire ... At last , our efforts of lobbying have produced
results : millions of inhabitants of the four Continents and almost
half the population of Europe have recognised our Genocide based on
the genuine veracity and legality of the documents presented .
How can we - NOW - tell these peoples and these organisations that
the documents which we have presented in the past to convince them
to recognise our Genocide , have to be reviewed by a joint-committee
? How can we allow ourselves to create in their minds the slightest
doubt on the accuracy of these documents and ask them to ignore the
former documentation and adopt a new revision? How can we afford to
loose their faith in us? How can we even convince ourselves that we
need a new joint-committee to tell us if really a million and half
of our people were butchered and if our land was taken from us ?
As much as one must admire the good-will created by this rapproachement
and contained in the wording of the Protocols , as much as one must
think of all the materiel interests that will contribute to shape our
Present , but i believe that we cannot take part and must not be part
of that joint-committee.
Let Turkey set-up their own committee to study their huge bulk of
documents : this will give them the best opportunity to diminish the
crime and falsify the texts as that page of their history is still
left blank . And they need desperately to fill it with the narrative
of good and glorious deeds by their predecessors.
Our own page of history has been written by the genocidal actions of
Turkey . Not a word can be changed . And it is the most poignant page
of our history, written with the blood of our people .
Odette Bazil Buckinghamshire UK [email protected]