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TCA PRESIDENT LINCOLN MCCURDY: "PRESSURE MUST BE EXERTED ON ARMENIA TO ESTABLISH A JOINT COMMISSION OF HISTORIANS" - INTERVIEW
APA
Feb 3 2012
Azerbaijan
"Sadly, those who show great humanitarian concern for a historical
tragedy have no compassion for the hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani
refugees created by Armenian aggression today"
Washington. Isabel Levine - APA. APA correspondent interviews with
Lincoln McCurdy, the president of Turkish Coalition of America (TCA)
- What are your views on Armenia's negative insistence on international
community as the French Senate recently passed the bill penalizing
the denial of the so-called genocides recognized by the law?
- This bill criminalizes speech by mandating the categorical acceptance
of a historical narrative. It goes beyond expressing support for
a one-sided narrative of the Ottoman Armenian tragedy, and would
effectively censor any viewpoint that differs from how a political
body, the French Parliament, reads and interprets this history and
defines it - although it lacks the legal or legitimate authority to
do so. It is an onslaught on academic freedom, freedom of inquiry,
freedom of thought and freedom of speech. This is antithetical to
the impartial pursuit of the truth.
There is ongoing and lively scholarly inquiry into this period of
history and how to most accurately understand and characterize the
tragic events during the closing days of the Ottoman Empire. In fact,
just recently, an issue of the Middle East Critique shed light on
the complex and controversial nature of the Ottoman Armenian tragedy.
Under the French law, some of the scholars who contributed to this
publication could be prosecuted if they were to voice the conclusions
of their research in French soil!
At the heart of this issue is freedom of thought and speech. We are
not talking about hate speech or inciting anyone to violence through
speech. We are not even talking about offensive speech. One could agree
with the entire pro-Armenian narrative of this history but still not
define it as "genocide" under the definition of international law.
TCA maintains that President Sarkozy should refrain from signing this
bill into law not only in the name of free speech and intellectual
inquiry; but also to show his support for efforts to attain closure
on this period of history, with a view to building new and strong
relations between Turkey and Armenia.
- What are the prospects of the Armenian-Turkish reconciliation
in conditions when the Armenian lobby does not disavow the global
campaign for recognition of 'Armenian genocide' by parliaments,
as well as by the US Congress?
- The global campaign pursued by the Armenian lobby essentially reduces
the common history of the Ottoman Turks and Armenians to a one-sided
account of suffering that only serves to aggravate prejudices and
sabotage efforts to reconcile these two peoples.
This interpretation of history overlooks the historical friendship
between Ottoman Turks and Armenians-nurtured over ten centuries of
peaceful coexistence-and continues to cause division and bitterness.
Pursuing the truth concerning this complex chapter of history is
essential to fostering ties of friendship between Turks and Armenians
and paving the way towards improving relations between the two states
in the future.
- What should the US do in that case - stand aside of the process,
or continue participating in it?
- Anything the US can do to foster an atmosphere of reconciliation
between Turkey and Armenia would be appreciated. In this respect,
continued US support for the establishment of a joint commission of
historians to study the two nations' shared Ottoman past is of utmost
significance. It is encouraging that support for the creation of a
joint historical commission has also been voiced by the parliamentary
assemblies of the OSCE and the Council of Europe and most recently
by Swiss Foreign Minister Michelin Calmy-Rey.
It should be recalled that the proposal to establish a joint commission
of historians was first made by Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan
in 2005 to then-Armenian President Robert Kocharian. Ever since,
the proposal has been repeated on various occasions at the highest
levels. Regrettably, Armenia still has not responded favorably and,
in fact, continues to keep pertinent archives closed to scholarly
research. Pressure must be exerted on Armenia to change its stance
on these matters if this proposal is to be taken forward and turned
into an effective reality.
- How will the fact that France passed the "genocide" bill affect the
Turkish-West relations? Do you think the French Parliament's decision
will influence Turkey's activity as a NATO member, its place and
importance in the region?
- It will be up to the Turkish government and society to determine
the best course of action against an act that is regarded as directly
affecting the right of not just Turks, but everyone who holds a strong
opinion on a disputed historical matter. All indication so far is that
Turks are deeply offended by the French bill, and that the Turkish
government is taking this issue extremely seriously, as it should.
- How will the France's "genocide" bill affect to the Nagorno-Karabakh
adjustment process?
- France is a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, which seeks to find
a political solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The passage
of this bill in the France Senate raises serious questions as to the
ability of that country to act as an impartial broker in-and thus
constructively contribute to-the mediation of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
- Can Azerbaijan provide any support to Turkey in resisting campaign
of Armenian lobby on passing the 'genocide' in the parliaments of
other countries? What kind of joint steps can Turkey and Azerbaijan
take in the current situation?
- Sadly, those who show great humanitarian concern for a historical
tragedy have no compassion for the hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani
refugees created by Armenian aggression today. We find this very
difficult to understand.
TCA has always advocated that rapprochement between Turkey and Armenia
must include a joint effort to find a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
The histories as well as futures of Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan
are very much intertwined, and we implore all parties to take an
approach to both past and present that can create sustainable peace
and prosperity for future generations in the region.
From: Baghdasarian
APA
Feb 3 2012
Azerbaijan
"Sadly, those who show great humanitarian concern for a historical
tragedy have no compassion for the hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani
refugees created by Armenian aggression today"
Washington. Isabel Levine - APA. APA correspondent interviews with
Lincoln McCurdy, the president of Turkish Coalition of America (TCA)
- What are your views on Armenia's negative insistence on international
community as the French Senate recently passed the bill penalizing
the denial of the so-called genocides recognized by the law?
- This bill criminalizes speech by mandating the categorical acceptance
of a historical narrative. It goes beyond expressing support for
a one-sided narrative of the Ottoman Armenian tragedy, and would
effectively censor any viewpoint that differs from how a political
body, the French Parliament, reads and interprets this history and
defines it - although it lacks the legal or legitimate authority to
do so. It is an onslaught on academic freedom, freedom of inquiry,
freedom of thought and freedom of speech. This is antithetical to
the impartial pursuit of the truth.
There is ongoing and lively scholarly inquiry into this period of
history and how to most accurately understand and characterize the
tragic events during the closing days of the Ottoman Empire. In fact,
just recently, an issue of the Middle East Critique shed light on
the complex and controversial nature of the Ottoman Armenian tragedy.
Under the French law, some of the scholars who contributed to this
publication could be prosecuted if they were to voice the conclusions
of their research in French soil!
At the heart of this issue is freedom of thought and speech. We are
not talking about hate speech or inciting anyone to violence through
speech. We are not even talking about offensive speech. One could agree
with the entire pro-Armenian narrative of this history but still not
define it as "genocide" under the definition of international law.
TCA maintains that President Sarkozy should refrain from signing this
bill into law not only in the name of free speech and intellectual
inquiry; but also to show his support for efforts to attain closure
on this period of history, with a view to building new and strong
relations between Turkey and Armenia.
- What are the prospects of the Armenian-Turkish reconciliation
in conditions when the Armenian lobby does not disavow the global
campaign for recognition of 'Armenian genocide' by parliaments,
as well as by the US Congress?
- The global campaign pursued by the Armenian lobby essentially reduces
the common history of the Ottoman Turks and Armenians to a one-sided
account of suffering that only serves to aggravate prejudices and
sabotage efforts to reconcile these two peoples.
This interpretation of history overlooks the historical friendship
between Ottoman Turks and Armenians-nurtured over ten centuries of
peaceful coexistence-and continues to cause division and bitterness.
Pursuing the truth concerning this complex chapter of history is
essential to fostering ties of friendship between Turks and Armenians
and paving the way towards improving relations between the two states
in the future.
- What should the US do in that case - stand aside of the process,
or continue participating in it?
- Anything the US can do to foster an atmosphere of reconciliation
between Turkey and Armenia would be appreciated. In this respect,
continued US support for the establishment of a joint commission of
historians to study the two nations' shared Ottoman past is of utmost
significance. It is encouraging that support for the creation of a
joint historical commission has also been voiced by the parliamentary
assemblies of the OSCE and the Council of Europe and most recently
by Swiss Foreign Minister Michelin Calmy-Rey.
It should be recalled that the proposal to establish a joint commission
of historians was first made by Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan
in 2005 to then-Armenian President Robert Kocharian. Ever since,
the proposal has been repeated on various occasions at the highest
levels. Regrettably, Armenia still has not responded favorably and,
in fact, continues to keep pertinent archives closed to scholarly
research. Pressure must be exerted on Armenia to change its stance
on these matters if this proposal is to be taken forward and turned
into an effective reality.
- How will the fact that France passed the "genocide" bill affect the
Turkish-West relations? Do you think the French Parliament's decision
will influence Turkey's activity as a NATO member, its place and
importance in the region?
- It will be up to the Turkish government and society to determine
the best course of action against an act that is regarded as directly
affecting the right of not just Turks, but everyone who holds a strong
opinion on a disputed historical matter. All indication so far is that
Turks are deeply offended by the French bill, and that the Turkish
government is taking this issue extremely seriously, as it should.
- How will the France's "genocide" bill affect to the Nagorno-Karabakh
adjustment process?
- France is a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, which seeks to find
a political solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The passage
of this bill in the France Senate raises serious questions as to the
ability of that country to act as an impartial broker in-and thus
constructively contribute to-the mediation of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
- Can Azerbaijan provide any support to Turkey in resisting campaign
of Armenian lobby on passing the 'genocide' in the parliaments of
other countries? What kind of joint steps can Turkey and Azerbaijan
take in the current situation?
- Sadly, those who show great humanitarian concern for a historical
tragedy have no compassion for the hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani
refugees created by Armenian aggression today. We find this very
difficult to understand.
TCA has always advocated that rapprochement between Turkey and Armenia
must include a joint effort to find a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.
The histories as well as futures of Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan
are very much intertwined, and we implore all parties to take an
approach to both past and present that can create sustainable peace
and prosperity for future generations in the region.
From: Baghdasarian