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The Int'l Raoul Wallenberg Foundation
July 18 2014
Identifying and honoring Muslim rescuers of Armenians
Eurnekian: "This is an unchartered territory waiting to be discovered"
The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation (IRWF) and
Kaloosdian/Mugar Chair - Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide
Studies at Clark University, join forces in a major research effort
under the supervision of Prof. Taner Akcam
Eduardo Eurnekian, Chairman of the IRWF announced the launching of an
ambitious research project which will identify Turks and Kurds that
reached-out to the victims of the Armenian Genocide.
Eurnekian elaborated further: "The main mission of the IRWF is to
unveil untold stories of rescue and solidarity. The issue of the
Muslim rescuers who went out of their way to save Armenians at the
beginning of the 20th century, was not properly studied yet. This is
an unchartered territory waiting to be discovered. It is a great honor
to join forces with Prof. Taner Akcam and his Chair at the Strassler
Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Clark University in an
attempt to identify and honor the many Turks and Kurds that lended a
hand to their Armenian neighbors in one of the darkest periods of
mankind. We do the same concerning the Holocaust. Rather than focusing
on the evil, we strive to highlight the spirit of solidarity of the
women and men who, like Raoul Wallenberg, oftentimes risked their own
lives to save others. This is our duty towards those saviors and above
all, our obligation towards the young generations that should be aware
of these role models".
The research project will start in the next weeks, under the
professional supervision of Professor Taner Akcam, a world-renowned
Turkish historian and sociologist who devoted his efforts to try and
reconcile the narratives of the Armenian and Turks.
The investigation will be conducted by an in-depth and painstaking
research "on the ground", in Muslim (Turkish and Kurd) provinces in
which most killing occurred and where most of these stories have been
passed on verbally from generation to generation.
The project and its funding was approved by the Board of the IRWF and
it is expected to last one year.
Once concluded, the research will be published and the IRWF will pay
tribute to the Muslim rescuers and incorporate their stories into its
educational programs.
"Recognition of goodness is one of the pillars of our mission and we
are confident that this ambitious research will enable us to add more
names to the list of rescuers", Eurnekian stressed.
http://www.raoulwallenberg.net/highlights/identifying-and-honoring-muslim-rescuers-of-armenians/
From: A. Papazian
July 18 2014
Identifying and honoring Muslim rescuers of Armenians
Eurnekian: "This is an unchartered territory waiting to be discovered"
The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation (IRWF) and
Kaloosdian/Mugar Chair - Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide
Studies at Clark University, join forces in a major research effort
under the supervision of Prof. Taner Akcam
Eduardo Eurnekian, Chairman of the IRWF announced the launching of an
ambitious research project which will identify Turks and Kurds that
reached-out to the victims of the Armenian Genocide.
Eurnekian elaborated further: "The main mission of the IRWF is to
unveil untold stories of rescue and solidarity. The issue of the
Muslim rescuers who went out of their way to save Armenians at the
beginning of the 20th century, was not properly studied yet. This is
an unchartered territory waiting to be discovered. It is a great honor
to join forces with Prof. Taner Akcam and his Chair at the Strassler
Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Clark University in an
attempt to identify and honor the many Turks and Kurds that lended a
hand to their Armenian neighbors in one of the darkest periods of
mankind. We do the same concerning the Holocaust. Rather than focusing
on the evil, we strive to highlight the spirit of solidarity of the
women and men who, like Raoul Wallenberg, oftentimes risked their own
lives to save others. This is our duty towards those saviors and above
all, our obligation towards the young generations that should be aware
of these role models".
The research project will start in the next weeks, under the
professional supervision of Professor Taner Akcam, a world-renowned
Turkish historian and sociologist who devoted his efforts to try and
reconcile the narratives of the Armenian and Turks.
The investigation will be conducted by an in-depth and painstaking
research "on the ground", in Muslim (Turkish and Kurd) provinces in
which most killing occurred and where most of these stories have been
passed on verbally from generation to generation.
The project and its funding was approved by the Board of the IRWF and
it is expected to last one year.
Once concluded, the research will be published and the IRWF will pay
tribute to the Muslim rescuers and incorporate their stories into its
educational programs.
"Recognition of goodness is one of the pillars of our mission and we
are confident that this ambitious research will enable us to add more
names to the list of rescuers", Eurnekian stressed.
http://www.raoulwallenberg.net/highlights/identifying-and-honoring-muslim-rescuers-of-armenians/
From: A. Papazian