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ARMENIAN GENOCIDE: WHY THE DEBATE RAGES, A CENTURY ON
The Week, UK
april 20 2015
As the 100th anniversary of the mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman
Turks approaches, controversy over what took place shows no sign
of abating.
What happened?
On 24 April 1915, Ottoman authorities began arresting the members
of the two million-strong minority Christian community, explains
The Guardian. First, around 50 community leaders and intellectuals
were arrested and executed. The same fate befell Armenians in the
Ottoman army.
In the months that followed, Ottoman Turks deported Armenians en masse
from eastern Anatolia to the Syrian desert and other areas. They
were killed or died from starvation or disease. It was the biggest
atrocity of the Great War.
Describing the horrors the victims faced, the New York Times quotes
respected historian David Fromkin, who wrote: "Rape and beating were
commonplace. Those who were not killed at once were driven through
mountains and deserts without food, drink or shelter. Hundreds of
thousands of Armenians eventually succumbed or were killed ."
Who were the Armenians and why were they targeted?
Armenians, an ancient people who converted to Christianity in the
third century AD, had been persecuted in Ottoman Turkey in the late
19th and early 20th centuries. Turkish propaganda began to present
the Armenians as traitors and a pro-Russian "fifth column".
How many died?
This remains one of the event's most contentious issues. Armenians say
1.5 million were killed, but Turkey estimates the total to be 300,000.
According to the International Association of Genocide Scholars,
the death toll was "more than a million".
Was it genocide?
This, too, is still a fiercely debated question. Article Two of
the UN Convention on Genocide of December 1948 describes genocide
as carrying out acts intended "to destroy, in whole or in part,
a national, ethnic, racial or religious group".
Turkey has never accepted the description of "genocide". Officials
accept that atrocities were committed but say they happened in wartime,
when death was widespread. They insist that there was no systematic
attempt to destroy the Christian Armenian people.
However, scholars widely view the episode as genocide and so do many
other states. Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Italy, Russia and Uruguay
are among more than 20 countries that have officially recognised
genocide against the Armenians. However, the UK, US and Israel are
among those who do not.
Among Israelis, the state's refusal to recognise the genocide has
caused red-hot debate. A recent editorial in the Jerusalem Post argued
that Turkey's actions influenced and emboldened Adolf Hitler to later
target Jews.
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently acknowledged that
Armenians had suffered and offered his condolences. This was the
furthest any Turkish leader has gone on the issue, but he remains
unbowed on the genocide point.
"The Armenian diaspora is trying to instil hatred against Turkey
through a worldwide campaign on genocide claims ahead of the centennial
anniversary of 1915," he added recently. "If we examine what our
nation had to go through over the past 100 to 150 years, we would
find far more suffering than what the Armenians went through."
How is the anniversary being marked?
On April 24, Armenians from Turkey and the diaspora will assemble
in Istanbul's central Taksim Square. There will also be a concert
featuring Armenian and Turkish musicians.
However, rather than formally recognise the anniversary, Turkish
authorities have scheduled for the same day a centennial commemoration
of a separate event - the Battle of Gallipoli.
Reality television star Kim Kardashian - who has Armenian ancestry
has visited Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, to draw attention to
the issue.
In response to the headlines the visit generated, Turkish media
complained about "'genocide' propaganda" and accused the Armenian
lobby in the US of making Kardashian into a "genocide' ambassador".
http://www.theweek.co.uk/63406/armenian-genocide-why-the-debate-rages-a-century-on
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
The Week, UK
april 20 2015
As the 100th anniversary of the mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman
Turks approaches, controversy over what took place shows no sign
of abating.
What happened?
On 24 April 1915, Ottoman authorities began arresting the members
of the two million-strong minority Christian community, explains
The Guardian. First, around 50 community leaders and intellectuals
were arrested and executed. The same fate befell Armenians in the
Ottoman army.
In the months that followed, Ottoman Turks deported Armenians en masse
from eastern Anatolia to the Syrian desert and other areas. They
were killed or died from starvation or disease. It was the biggest
atrocity of the Great War.
Describing the horrors the victims faced, the New York Times quotes
respected historian David Fromkin, who wrote: "Rape and beating were
commonplace. Those who were not killed at once were driven through
mountains and deserts without food, drink or shelter. Hundreds of
thousands of Armenians eventually succumbed or were killed ."
Who were the Armenians and why were they targeted?
Armenians, an ancient people who converted to Christianity in the
third century AD, had been persecuted in Ottoman Turkey in the late
19th and early 20th centuries. Turkish propaganda began to present
the Armenians as traitors and a pro-Russian "fifth column".
How many died?
This remains one of the event's most contentious issues. Armenians say
1.5 million were killed, but Turkey estimates the total to be 300,000.
According to the International Association of Genocide Scholars,
the death toll was "more than a million".
Was it genocide?
This, too, is still a fiercely debated question. Article Two of
the UN Convention on Genocide of December 1948 describes genocide
as carrying out acts intended "to destroy, in whole or in part,
a national, ethnic, racial or religious group".
Turkey has never accepted the description of "genocide". Officials
accept that atrocities were committed but say they happened in wartime,
when death was widespread. They insist that there was no systematic
attempt to destroy the Christian Armenian people.
However, scholars widely view the episode as genocide and so do many
other states. Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Italy, Russia and Uruguay
are among more than 20 countries that have officially recognised
genocide against the Armenians. However, the UK, US and Israel are
among those who do not.
Among Israelis, the state's refusal to recognise the genocide has
caused red-hot debate. A recent editorial in the Jerusalem Post argued
that Turkey's actions influenced and emboldened Adolf Hitler to later
target Jews.
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently acknowledged that
Armenians had suffered and offered his condolences. This was the
furthest any Turkish leader has gone on the issue, but he remains
unbowed on the genocide point.
"The Armenian diaspora is trying to instil hatred against Turkey
through a worldwide campaign on genocide claims ahead of the centennial
anniversary of 1915," he added recently. "If we examine what our
nation had to go through over the past 100 to 150 years, we would
find far more suffering than what the Armenians went through."
How is the anniversary being marked?
On April 24, Armenians from Turkey and the diaspora will assemble
in Istanbul's central Taksim Square. There will also be a concert
featuring Armenian and Turkish musicians.
However, rather than formally recognise the anniversary, Turkish
authorities have scheduled for the same day a centennial commemoration
of a separate event - the Battle of Gallipoli.
Reality television star Kim Kardashian - who has Armenian ancestry
has visited Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, to draw attention to
the issue.
In response to the headlines the visit generated, Turkish media
complained about "'genocide' propaganda" and accused the Armenian
lobby in the US of making Kardashian into a "genocide' ambassador".
http://www.theweek.co.uk/63406/armenian-genocide-why-the-debate-rages-a-century-on
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress