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KATIA
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
March 22 2013
Web Essay: WWI atrocities against Armenians not 'genocide'
Written by
FERMAN KONUKMAN
Guest Essayist
As a Turkic-American, member of the Pax Turcica Institute, I welcome
the idea of teaching about the recognized crimes against humanity,
such as the Holocaust, Srebrenica and Rwanda Genocides, in our public
schools. But I am deeply disappointed that the Pennsylvania House
Bill 176 and Senate Bill 47, currently referred to the education
committees of each chamber, include the spurious "Armenian genocide"
in their proposed amendment for the state Public School Code of 1949.
The World War I-era atrocities in the Ottoman Empire were never tried
by any competent tribunal and no intent to exterminate Armenians
was established as required by the 1948 United Nations Convention
on Prevention and Punishment of Genocide. The International Court of
Justice - a primary authority to determine the applicability of the
"genocide" term - has never opened a case or drawn a conclusion on
these genocide allegations. According to Bernard Lewis, a renowned
Princeton scholar of the Ottoman history, there was no "deliberate
preconceived decision of the Ottoman government" to eliminate
Armenians.
Neither federal government nor Congress recognizes the alleged Armenian
genocide. In December 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit overturned the California court decision in the Movsesian
vs. Victoria Versicherung AG case - that of the controversial insurance
claims based on state legislature's faulty recognition of Armenian
genocide. The Ninth Circuit conclusion referred to the prior Supreme
Court decisions that a state law that conflicts with a federal action
such as a treaty, federal statute, or executive branch policy is
"unconstitutional under the foreign affairs doctrine."
Furthermore, between 1914 and 1922, an estimated 523,955 Turks,
Kurds, Azeris and other Muslims were mass murdered by the Armenian
nationalist forces seeking to create their own state in Anatolia and
the Caucasus. The figure does not include those missing or buried
in mass graves. So, if any arbitrary unrecognized claim of genocide
is considered for teaching in state public schools, the SB 47 and HB
176 shall be amended to include the above mentioned Turkish suffering.
Ferman Konukman is a Brockport resident.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20130321/OPINION02/130319015
KATIA
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
March 22 2013
Web Essay: WWI atrocities against Armenians not 'genocide'
Written by
FERMAN KONUKMAN
Guest Essayist
As a Turkic-American, member of the Pax Turcica Institute, I welcome
the idea of teaching about the recognized crimes against humanity,
such as the Holocaust, Srebrenica and Rwanda Genocides, in our public
schools. But I am deeply disappointed that the Pennsylvania House
Bill 176 and Senate Bill 47, currently referred to the education
committees of each chamber, include the spurious "Armenian genocide"
in their proposed amendment for the state Public School Code of 1949.
The World War I-era atrocities in the Ottoman Empire were never tried
by any competent tribunal and no intent to exterminate Armenians
was established as required by the 1948 United Nations Convention
on Prevention and Punishment of Genocide. The International Court of
Justice - a primary authority to determine the applicability of the
"genocide" term - has never opened a case or drawn a conclusion on
these genocide allegations. According to Bernard Lewis, a renowned
Princeton scholar of the Ottoman history, there was no "deliberate
preconceived decision of the Ottoman government" to eliminate
Armenians.
Neither federal government nor Congress recognizes the alleged Armenian
genocide. In December 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit overturned the California court decision in the Movsesian
vs. Victoria Versicherung AG case - that of the controversial insurance
claims based on state legislature's faulty recognition of Armenian
genocide. The Ninth Circuit conclusion referred to the prior Supreme
Court decisions that a state law that conflicts with a federal action
such as a treaty, federal statute, or executive branch policy is
"unconstitutional under the foreign affairs doctrine."
Furthermore, between 1914 and 1922, an estimated 523,955 Turks,
Kurds, Azeris and other Muslims were mass murdered by the Armenian
nationalist forces seeking to create their own state in Anatolia and
the Caucasus. The figure does not include those missing or buried
in mass graves. So, if any arbitrary unrecognized claim of genocide
is considered for teaching in state public schools, the SB 47 and HB
176 shall be amended to include the above mentioned Turkish suffering.
Ferman Konukman is a Brockport resident.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20130321/OPINION02/130319015