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ARMENIANS SPLIT OVER WHO BELONGS TO THE 'DIASPORA'
Hurriyet
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=armenians-split-over-who-constitutes-8216diaspora8217-2011-05-09
May 9 2011
Turkey
Minister Hagopyan arrived in Turkey on Thursday to participate in
the Global Summit of Women, a conference held in Istanbul.
The granting of an award to Armenian intellectuals from Istanbul by
Armenia's diaspora minister has sparked a global debate among the
prominent members of the Armenian community over what constitutes the
"diaspora."
Some of the figures who received awards Sunday objected to being
considered part of the diaspora since they reside in their ancestors'
native lands.
"It is unacceptable to define people residing in their homelands as
'diaspora,'" historian Ara Sarafian, the director of the Gomidas
Institute in London, told the Hurriyet Daily News on Monday,
criticizing both the Armenian government and the people who received
the awards.
"First of all, I would like to ask why those people who accepted the
awards while maintaining their critical stance avoided pointing out
during the ceremony the fact that they did not constitute a diaspora
because [their ancestors] had been living in their own homelands for
thousands of years," Sarafian said.
"I would [also] like to ask just how much Armenia recognizes and
understands the Armenians of Istanbul who represent the milestone of
worldwide Armenian culture," he added.
Vahakn Karakashian, the editor-in-chief of Horizon newspaper in
Canada, agreed that the 50,000-strong Armenian community in Istanbul
should not be considered part of the diaspora, adding that Armenians
have historical treasures in the area. But Karakashian said Diaspora
Minister Hranush Hagopyan's initiative to award the Istanbul Armenians
was still very well placed and worthy of recognition.
"It seems Armenia is making an effort to build some bridges. Our
intellectuals' criticism must be regarded as but only a small
reprimand," said writer, academic and linguist Sevan Nishanyan,
a Turkish Armenian, who also affirmed Hagopyan's positive intentions.
"We can say that Istanbul Armenians are a de facto diaspora, but if
they were Diyarbakır or Malatya Armenians, no one could argue that
they are diaspora," said Harout Ekmanian, a journalist from Aleppo,
Syria. "However, I wonder if the attitude of Istanbul Armenians toward
the word 'diaspora' might also be a result of the demonization of
the Armenian diaspora in the daily discourse for decades in Turkey."
Minister Hagopyan arrived in Turkey on Thursday to participate in the
Global Summit of Women, a conference held in Istanbul. She presented 15
intellectuals from Istanbul with gold medals at a special reception
hosted by the Turkish Armenian Patriarchate on the last day of
her visit.
"It could have been any minister from Armenia, but I would not have
preferred a diaspora minister to have come to Turkey. Where I live now
is where I have lived for thousands of years; I am no diaspora. This is
a terrible irony," Mıgırdic Margosyan, one of the award recipients,
told the Daily News shortly before the ceremony.
"We are where we need to be, and we continue paying our debt to this
land," said Garo Mafyan, a highly influential figure in Turkish pop
music, making the same argument as Margosyan.
Journalist Ekmanian also criticized the diaspora minister for the
limited scope of her role. "Apparently, her only duty is limited to
giving medals, honoring diaspora notables and organizing conferences
and summer camps that could only be used as materials for the state TV
evening news, with no long-term benefit for the diaspora participants
or the Armenian state," Ekmanian said.
A freelance journalist from Armenia, Ani Hovhannesiyan, also said
she understood quite well the attitude of the Istanbul Armenians but
thought the criticism was overblown.
"I hope Turkey's political stance toward the diaspora is not a factor
behind this attitude," she said.
From: A. Papazian
Hurriyet
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=armenians-split-over-who-constitutes-8216diaspora8217-2011-05-09
May 9 2011
Turkey
Minister Hagopyan arrived in Turkey on Thursday to participate in
the Global Summit of Women, a conference held in Istanbul.
The granting of an award to Armenian intellectuals from Istanbul by
Armenia's diaspora minister has sparked a global debate among the
prominent members of the Armenian community over what constitutes the
"diaspora."
Some of the figures who received awards Sunday objected to being
considered part of the diaspora since they reside in their ancestors'
native lands.
"It is unacceptable to define people residing in their homelands as
'diaspora,'" historian Ara Sarafian, the director of the Gomidas
Institute in London, told the Hurriyet Daily News on Monday,
criticizing both the Armenian government and the people who received
the awards.
"First of all, I would like to ask why those people who accepted the
awards while maintaining their critical stance avoided pointing out
during the ceremony the fact that they did not constitute a diaspora
because [their ancestors] had been living in their own homelands for
thousands of years," Sarafian said.
"I would [also] like to ask just how much Armenia recognizes and
understands the Armenians of Istanbul who represent the milestone of
worldwide Armenian culture," he added.
Vahakn Karakashian, the editor-in-chief of Horizon newspaper in
Canada, agreed that the 50,000-strong Armenian community in Istanbul
should not be considered part of the diaspora, adding that Armenians
have historical treasures in the area. But Karakashian said Diaspora
Minister Hranush Hagopyan's initiative to award the Istanbul Armenians
was still very well placed and worthy of recognition.
"It seems Armenia is making an effort to build some bridges. Our
intellectuals' criticism must be regarded as but only a small
reprimand," said writer, academic and linguist Sevan Nishanyan,
a Turkish Armenian, who also affirmed Hagopyan's positive intentions.
"We can say that Istanbul Armenians are a de facto diaspora, but if
they were Diyarbakır or Malatya Armenians, no one could argue that
they are diaspora," said Harout Ekmanian, a journalist from Aleppo,
Syria. "However, I wonder if the attitude of Istanbul Armenians toward
the word 'diaspora' might also be a result of the demonization of
the Armenian diaspora in the daily discourse for decades in Turkey."
Minister Hagopyan arrived in Turkey on Thursday to participate in the
Global Summit of Women, a conference held in Istanbul. She presented 15
intellectuals from Istanbul with gold medals at a special reception
hosted by the Turkish Armenian Patriarchate on the last day of
her visit.
"It could have been any minister from Armenia, but I would not have
preferred a diaspora minister to have come to Turkey. Where I live now
is where I have lived for thousands of years; I am no diaspora. This is
a terrible irony," Mıgırdic Margosyan, one of the award recipients,
told the Daily News shortly before the ceremony.
"We are where we need to be, and we continue paying our debt to this
land," said Garo Mafyan, a highly influential figure in Turkish pop
music, making the same argument as Margosyan.
Journalist Ekmanian also criticized the diaspora minister for the
limited scope of her role. "Apparently, her only duty is limited to
giving medals, honoring diaspora notables and organizing conferences
and summer camps that could only be used as materials for the state TV
evening news, with no long-term benefit for the diaspora participants
or the Armenian state," Ekmanian said.
A freelance journalist from Armenia, Ani Hovhannesiyan, also said
she understood quite well the attitude of the Istanbul Armenians but
thought the criticism was overblown.
"I hope Turkey's political stance toward the diaspora is not a factor
behind this attitude," she said.
From: A. Papazian