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TIME FOR JUSTICE FOR GENOCIDE VICTIMS
By Harry Koundakjian
http://www.mirrorspectator.com/2011/06/23/time-for-justice-for-genocide-victims/
Posted on June 23, 2011 by Editor
While some criminals guilty of committing genocide (such as those in
Serbia or Germany) are brought to trial, the majority go free, never
penalized for their horrific crimes. In particular, the Armenians
live with the unacknowledged Genocide of 1.5 million Armenians,
and the perpetrators have never been charged. Among the victims
was my great-grandfather, the Reverend Hagop Koundakjian, who was
burned alive near his town church with 28 of his parishioners. My
great-grandmother, Yeretzgin Maryam, reported this in a letter in
which she explains how she had to walk behind the Turkish officers'
horses to collect their manure and try to cook the undigested seeds
for her children and grandchildren.
Great-grandmother Yeretzgin Maryam (Mary) Koundakjian writes: "I wish
I had not been compelled to write about the terrible and frightening
tragedies that took place.
"The catastrophe struck like lightning. With tears in my eyes,
I write to you. Your father (Rev.)
Hagop Koundakjian was luckier than we were, because at the beginning
of the catastrophe, on the road to Adana, he was killed and did not
see the sudden destruction and premeditated attacks on our city. He
did not witness the burning of his city, did not hear the shocking
and frightening shooting by the cruel and heartless enemy.
"He did not see his sisters, brothers and relatives shot to death
indiscriminately.
"On April 11, 1909, we had our communion (at church, during the worship
service). It was a rather heartfelt ceremony. Nobody knew or imagined
that this would be his last sermon.
"On the next day father journeyed for the annual Armenian Evangelical
Church conference.
"As you might have heard already, all in the group of 28 from Osmaniah
were burned alive with your father. I want to assure you, my children,
that all these difficulties, threats of persecutions and doomsday
announcements have strengthened us in our faith - Christianity -
and belief in God.
"On April 16th, a gang of wild Turks, Kurds and Circassians attacked
Hassanbeyli. Our youth, with their limited arms, protected us
heroically but the enemy fighters advanced like locusts, obliging us
to take cover in the nearby hills. We prayed to the Lord to protect us.
"We were driven and took refuge at Bahche, where we still are today.
They (the Ottoman Turks) threatened us with death if we did not
convert to and accept Islam. We are very tired. We are near half-dead.
"Everything was destroyed. The church, in which your father served
for over 30 years, disappeared."
This is a fraction of the letter written by our great-grandmother
found so far. All our efforts to locate the rest have been in vain.
But we continue the search.
Having been born into an Evangelical family, I only have this portion
of our people's story, but I understand from very reliable sources
that Bishop Papken Charian of the Apostolic Brotherhood wrote his
dissertation on this same issue. He had collected all the martyrs
from the three denominations (Apostolic, Catholic and Evangelical)
and published it in a single volume.
This is also translated into English. You all can get this book under
the title Nahadag Hay Hokevoraganner (Martyred Armenian Clergy).
Last December, during a two-day forum attended by Genocide scholars
from about 20 countries, Armenia's President Serge Sargisian said
broader international recognition of the Armenian Genocide is essential
for preventing more crimes against humanity:
"The bitter lessons of the Armenian Genocide did not go down in the
history and memory of humankind as mere memories of the past. They
came to be replaced by the horrors of the Holocaust and the tragedies
in Rwanda, Darfur and many other places."
Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian of Armenia made the same point:
"Genocide denial and impunity pave the way for new crimes against
humanity. Regardless of geopolitical or other interests, the
international community must be united in condemning and preventing
genocide."
A comment made around the world was, "I want to hear the words,
'Armenians across the world, along with the Republic of Armenia,
demand reparations for the crime of genocide and the rightful return
of our confiscated lands."
My anger is because of this: What are our political leaders around
the world doing to compel the great powers - the US, Great Britain,
France, Russia and Germany - to make clear to successive Turkish
governments that either they accept these facts as truly Genocide,
and if not, that they would break off relations with Turkey. Turkey
is acting like a superpower now around the world in order to get into
the European Union. This should not happen. Yes, I know they are 80
million now, but surely we can prove that some of them - or perhaps
many, many of them - have Armenian blood in their veins. Many of their
earlier leaders were not Turks anyway; they were known as 'Deunmeh'
or converts.
Not many people know about our Tricolor flag. It is known as Yerakoouyn
and consists of three horizontal bands of red, blue and orange. The
meaning of the colors have been interpreted in different ways. Red
stood for the blood shed by Armenian soldiers in war, blue for the
Armenian sky and the orange represents for fertile lands of Armenia
and workers who work there. The official definition of the colors,
as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, is:
The red emblematizes people's continued struggle for survival,
and for the blood our brave ancestors shed, fighting the enemy and
sacrificing their lives to save the Armenian nation from annihilation,
ensure their freedom to practice their Christian faith, Armenia's
independence and freedom. The blue is for the people of Armenia to
live beneath peaceful skies and the orange symbolizes the creative
talent and hard-working nature of the people of Armenia. Long live
the flag of Armenia. History of the Armenian flag says it was created
after the First World War between 1918 and 1921, after Armenian gained
independence and was readopted on Aug. 24 1990, just before gaining
independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
It is a must for all Armenian families to read about and remember
our Martyrs. They should not and cannot be forgotten.
(Harry Koundakjian was chief photographer for the Associated Press
in the Middle East and North Africa for many years.)
By Harry Koundakjian
http://www.mirrorspectator.com/2011/06/23/time-for-justice-for-genocide-victims/
Posted on June 23, 2011 by Editor
While some criminals guilty of committing genocide (such as those in
Serbia or Germany) are brought to trial, the majority go free, never
penalized for their horrific crimes. In particular, the Armenians
live with the unacknowledged Genocide of 1.5 million Armenians,
and the perpetrators have never been charged. Among the victims
was my great-grandfather, the Reverend Hagop Koundakjian, who was
burned alive near his town church with 28 of his parishioners. My
great-grandmother, Yeretzgin Maryam, reported this in a letter in
which she explains how she had to walk behind the Turkish officers'
horses to collect their manure and try to cook the undigested seeds
for her children and grandchildren.
Great-grandmother Yeretzgin Maryam (Mary) Koundakjian writes: "I wish
I had not been compelled to write about the terrible and frightening
tragedies that took place.
"The catastrophe struck like lightning. With tears in my eyes,
I write to you. Your father (Rev.)
Hagop Koundakjian was luckier than we were, because at the beginning
of the catastrophe, on the road to Adana, he was killed and did not
see the sudden destruction and premeditated attacks on our city. He
did not witness the burning of his city, did not hear the shocking
and frightening shooting by the cruel and heartless enemy.
"He did not see his sisters, brothers and relatives shot to death
indiscriminately.
"On April 11, 1909, we had our communion (at church, during the worship
service). It was a rather heartfelt ceremony. Nobody knew or imagined
that this would be his last sermon.
"On the next day father journeyed for the annual Armenian Evangelical
Church conference.
"As you might have heard already, all in the group of 28 from Osmaniah
were burned alive with your father. I want to assure you, my children,
that all these difficulties, threats of persecutions and doomsday
announcements have strengthened us in our faith - Christianity -
and belief in God.
"On April 16th, a gang of wild Turks, Kurds and Circassians attacked
Hassanbeyli. Our youth, with their limited arms, protected us
heroically but the enemy fighters advanced like locusts, obliging us
to take cover in the nearby hills. We prayed to the Lord to protect us.
"We were driven and took refuge at Bahche, where we still are today.
They (the Ottoman Turks) threatened us with death if we did not
convert to and accept Islam. We are very tired. We are near half-dead.
"Everything was destroyed. The church, in which your father served
for over 30 years, disappeared."
This is a fraction of the letter written by our great-grandmother
found so far. All our efforts to locate the rest have been in vain.
But we continue the search.
Having been born into an Evangelical family, I only have this portion
of our people's story, but I understand from very reliable sources
that Bishop Papken Charian of the Apostolic Brotherhood wrote his
dissertation on this same issue. He had collected all the martyrs
from the three denominations (Apostolic, Catholic and Evangelical)
and published it in a single volume.
This is also translated into English. You all can get this book under
the title Nahadag Hay Hokevoraganner (Martyred Armenian Clergy).
Last December, during a two-day forum attended by Genocide scholars
from about 20 countries, Armenia's President Serge Sargisian said
broader international recognition of the Armenian Genocide is essential
for preventing more crimes against humanity:
"The bitter lessons of the Armenian Genocide did not go down in the
history and memory of humankind as mere memories of the past. They
came to be replaced by the horrors of the Holocaust and the tragedies
in Rwanda, Darfur and many other places."
Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian of Armenia made the same point:
"Genocide denial and impunity pave the way for new crimes against
humanity. Regardless of geopolitical or other interests, the
international community must be united in condemning and preventing
genocide."
A comment made around the world was, "I want to hear the words,
'Armenians across the world, along with the Republic of Armenia,
demand reparations for the crime of genocide and the rightful return
of our confiscated lands."
My anger is because of this: What are our political leaders around
the world doing to compel the great powers - the US, Great Britain,
France, Russia and Germany - to make clear to successive Turkish
governments that either they accept these facts as truly Genocide,
and if not, that they would break off relations with Turkey. Turkey
is acting like a superpower now around the world in order to get into
the European Union. This should not happen. Yes, I know they are 80
million now, but surely we can prove that some of them - or perhaps
many, many of them - have Armenian blood in their veins. Many of their
earlier leaders were not Turks anyway; they were known as 'Deunmeh'
or converts.
Not many people know about our Tricolor flag. It is known as Yerakoouyn
and consists of three horizontal bands of red, blue and orange. The
meaning of the colors have been interpreted in different ways. Red
stood for the blood shed by Armenian soldiers in war, blue for the
Armenian sky and the orange represents for fertile lands of Armenia
and workers who work there. The official definition of the colors,
as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, is:
The red emblematizes people's continued struggle for survival,
and for the blood our brave ancestors shed, fighting the enemy and
sacrificing their lives to save the Armenian nation from annihilation,
ensure their freedom to practice their Christian faith, Armenia's
independence and freedom. The blue is for the people of Armenia to
live beneath peaceful skies and the orange symbolizes the creative
talent and hard-working nature of the people of Armenia. Long live
the flag of Armenia. History of the Armenian flag says it was created
after the First World War between 1918 and 1921, after Armenian gained
independence and was readopted on Aug. 24 1990, just before gaining
independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
It is a must for all Armenian families to read about and remember
our Martyrs. They should not and cannot be forgotten.
(Harry Koundakjian was chief photographer for the Associated Press
in the Middle East and North Africa for many years.)