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RFi, France
April 12 2015
Armenians welcome Pope's genocide statement, Turkey protests
By Sarah Elzas
Turkey summoned the Vatican ambassador to Ankara on Sunday after Pope
Francis used the word "genocide" to describe the massacres of
Armenians by Ottoman forces during World War I. In a statement on
Twitter Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accused the Pope of
"inciting resentment and hatred with baseless allegations" but
Armenians have welcomed the statement.
In a mass at St Peter's Cathedral to mark the centenary of massacres
attended by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, the Pope called the
massacre of the Armenians between 1915 and 1917 "the first genocide of
the 20th century".
This was carefully worded, quoting a statement made in 2001 by Pope
John Paul II and the Armenian Patriarch.
While the Pope did not use his own words, it was the first time the
term "genocide" has been pronounced in connection with Armenia in
Saint Peter's.
Gaidz Minassian, a political scientist at the University of Paris,
welcomed the statement Sunday.
"It's very important, not just on a symbolic or moral level, it's a
political act," he told RFI.
For Armenians "it's a psychological victory" and shows there is an
international consensus that Turkey must recognise the concept of the
genocide.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million people were killed between 1915 and
1917 and have pushed for the massacres to be recognised as genocide.
Turkey says 300,000-500,000 Armenians died, along with the same number
of Turks, in an Armenian uprising against the Ottoman rulers.
The Pope described the "immense and senseless slaughter" of the
Armenians and said there was a duty to "honour their memory, for
whenever memory fades, it means that evil allows wounds to fester".
Minassian says the comments will help Turkish citizens "to do the
right thing" in pushing their government to recognise the genocide,
which he calls "an act of freedom to show people that history belongs
to them and not to the state."
Pope Francis had been under pressure to use the term "genocide"
publicly, despite a risk of alienating Turkey, which is seen as an
important ally in the fight against radical Islam.
But historian Samim Akgonul says Turkey needs the West, more than the
West needs it.
"Turkey is an important ally and always has been, during the Cold War,
the two Gulf Wars, and today the Middle East issues," he told RFI. "On
the other hand, Turkey is very isolated."
The Pope's comments were widely reported in Turkey.
Akgonul says this is not surprising, as using the word genocide in
connection with Armenians is no longer taboo, as it used to be.
"Twenty years ago, the word could not be pronounced," he told RFI.
Today there are conferences on the issue, and even a commemoration of
the centenary planned on Istanbul's Taksim Square on 24 April.
Last year, for the first time, then Turkish prime minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan offered condolences to the descendants of the Armenians
who died in 1915.
A historian at the University of Strasbourg who has been involved in
the movement to get Turkey to recognise the genocide, Akgonul sees
public opinion changing gradually but steadily.
"We are in an era where it is difficult to construct one, single
official history," he said. "Today people are informed from everywhere
... so it is difficult to construct a dogma on historical facts. The
younger generation, especially, is aware that in the history of Turkey
and its nation-building, there have been tragedies."
He predicts that that Turkey will change.
"I think that in one decade, Turkey will officially take steps to
repair this historical trauma," he said.
http://www.english.rfi.fr/europe/20150412-armenians-welcime-popes-genocide-statement-turkey-protests
April 12 2015
Armenians welcome Pope's genocide statement, Turkey protests
By Sarah Elzas
Turkey summoned the Vatican ambassador to Ankara on Sunday after Pope
Francis used the word "genocide" to describe the massacres of
Armenians by Ottoman forces during World War I. In a statement on
Twitter Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accused the Pope of
"inciting resentment and hatred with baseless allegations" but
Armenians have welcomed the statement.
In a mass at St Peter's Cathedral to mark the centenary of massacres
attended by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, the Pope called the
massacre of the Armenians between 1915 and 1917 "the first genocide of
the 20th century".
This was carefully worded, quoting a statement made in 2001 by Pope
John Paul II and the Armenian Patriarch.
While the Pope did not use his own words, it was the first time the
term "genocide" has been pronounced in connection with Armenia in
Saint Peter's.
Gaidz Minassian, a political scientist at the University of Paris,
welcomed the statement Sunday.
"It's very important, not just on a symbolic or moral level, it's a
political act," he told RFI.
For Armenians "it's a psychological victory" and shows there is an
international consensus that Turkey must recognise the concept of the
genocide.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million people were killed between 1915 and
1917 and have pushed for the massacres to be recognised as genocide.
Turkey says 300,000-500,000 Armenians died, along with the same number
of Turks, in an Armenian uprising against the Ottoman rulers.
The Pope described the "immense and senseless slaughter" of the
Armenians and said there was a duty to "honour their memory, for
whenever memory fades, it means that evil allows wounds to fester".
Minassian says the comments will help Turkish citizens "to do the
right thing" in pushing their government to recognise the genocide,
which he calls "an act of freedom to show people that history belongs
to them and not to the state."
Pope Francis had been under pressure to use the term "genocide"
publicly, despite a risk of alienating Turkey, which is seen as an
important ally in the fight against radical Islam.
But historian Samim Akgonul says Turkey needs the West, more than the
West needs it.
"Turkey is an important ally and always has been, during the Cold War,
the two Gulf Wars, and today the Middle East issues," he told RFI. "On
the other hand, Turkey is very isolated."
The Pope's comments were widely reported in Turkey.
Akgonul says this is not surprising, as using the word genocide in
connection with Armenians is no longer taboo, as it used to be.
"Twenty years ago, the word could not be pronounced," he told RFI.
Today there are conferences on the issue, and even a commemoration of
the centenary planned on Istanbul's Taksim Square on 24 April.
Last year, for the first time, then Turkish prime minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan offered condolences to the descendants of the Armenians
who died in 1915.
A historian at the University of Strasbourg who has been involved in
the movement to get Turkey to recognise the genocide, Akgonul sees
public opinion changing gradually but steadily.
"We are in an era where it is difficult to construct one, single
official history," he said. "Today people are informed from everywhere
... so it is difficult to construct a dogma on historical facts. The
younger generation, especially, is aware that in the history of Turkey
and its nation-building, there have been tragedies."
He predicts that that Turkey will change.
"I think that in one decade, Turkey will officially take steps to
repair this historical trauma," he said.
http://www.english.rfi.fr/europe/20150412-armenians-welcime-popes-genocide-statement-turkey-protests