Author Hasan Cemal: Turkey hasn’t changed much since 1915

November 13, 2013 By administrator

November 13, 2013 – 16:32 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net – Turkey must apologize for the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire ahead of the 100th anniversary of the massacres in 2015, Hasan Cemal, a Turkish journalist, the grandson of the Genocide perpetrator Cemal Pasha said.
“Armenians have been a native population of Anatolia until 1915. Even now Turkey hasn’t understood or shared their pain from losing their lands and property. The border between Armenia and Turkey must be opened, with diplomatic ties to be restored without preconditions,” Cemal urged.
He further called on Turkish government to alter their attitude towards Armenians and issue textbooks reflecting the historic truth. “Does Prime Minister Erdogan give it any thought? Well he should, seeing as Turkey hasn’t changed much since 1915,” T24 quoted Cemal as saying.
Hasan Cemal (born 1944) is a Turkish journalist, writer and grandson of Cemal Pasha. He was the editor of Cumhuriyet from 1981 to 1992, and of Sabah from 1992 to 1998. In 2013 he resigned from the Milliyet newspaper after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had criticised his article supporting Milliyets publication of minutes of a parliamentary visit to Öcalan, and Milliyet suspended him and refused to publish his returning column.
He is best known for acknowledging and apologizing for the Armenian Genocide, a crime which was perpetrated by Pasha. His 2012 book on the subject (written in response to the 2007 assassination of his friend Hrant Dink) is titled 1915: Ermeni Soykırımı (1915: Armenian Genocide).

Read Turkish Version full story

Turkey’s Gag Rule on ‘Musa Dagh’ Film to be Explored at ANCA Grassroots

November 13, 2013 By administrator

Filmmakers Edwin Avaness, Serj Minassians, Producers of “Epic Denied,” are Prominent additions to ANCA Grassroots ‘Film and the Arts’ Panel,

GLENDALE—Efforts by famed director-producer Rouben Mamoulian to produce a feature film based on “Forty Days of Musa Dagh” and Turkish and State Department collusion to halt that production will be the focus of a presentation by Los Angeles-based filmmakers Edwin Avaness and Serj Minassians during the “Film and Arts” panel at the ANCA Grassroots Conference to take place Thanksgiving Weekend.
Through the presentation and discussion of their new film “Epic Denied,” Avaness and Minassians will shed light on Turkish and State Department collusion to force the hand of movie giant MGM to halt plans to produce the Franz Werfel epic novel for the theaters.
“Having Edwin and Serj on the panel will shed light on an important episode in our Armenian-American reality and highlight the lengths that Turkey and the State Department went to in perpetuating Turkish denial of the Armenian Genocide,” said Ara Khachatourian, chairman of the ANCA Grassroots organizing committee.
“This topic is so current as the Armenian-American community has mounted a campaign to stop another of Turkey’s efforts to ‘gag’ the truth by forcing the White House to not allow the display of the Armenian Genocide ‘Orphan Rug’ at the Smithsonian,” added Khachatourian.
Edwin Avaness received his Master of Arts Degree from Northwestern University’s Radio-TV-Film Program, and his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Film and Digital Media productions at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He then joined the executive board of the Armin T. Wegner Society of USA, where the society revives the legacy of the 20th Century humanist through his work. Avaness is a co-creator of the annual humanitarian award bestowed by the Armin T. Wegner Society unto filmmakers whose work advances social and human rights.
Avaness has worked on many projects, including: My Dark Days (2001); The Journey (2002), which was shot in Armenia with a full Armenian cast and crew; Tabriz: Images from the Forgotten World (2006), a docudrama which has garnered popular reception and awards during its tour of over ten film festivals; Virginty (2013), a film highlighting human rights issues; and Damn Foreigners (2014), a feature film based on a true story which highlights the instances of prejudice within the justice system of the United States.
Serj Minassians is a graduate of the Radio-TV-Film department from California State University, Northridge, where he produced and directed his award-winning senior project Stream of Social Intercourse (1990) which went on to win six major awards in various film festivals around the country. He joined the Armenian Film Society and became an active member; he then joined the Executive Board of the Arpa Foundation for Film Music and Art. Minassians is currently a board member of the Land and Culture Organization, an international organization which helps rebuild and preserve historic Armenian landmarks.
Minassians’ work includes: Beyond Commitment (1995), a documentary concerning the volunteers of the Land and Culture Organization; Golden Rose (2001), adapted from a short story by Aramais Hovsepian which tells the story of a lonely poet who is looking for one last chance at happiness; and The Journey (2002), which premiered at the Milan International Film festival and won the Audience Award.
Currently Avaness and Minassians are working on the documentary Epic Denied: Depriving the Forty Days of Musa Dagh (2015) which covers the trials and tribulations of Hollywood’s multiple attempts to produce an epic movie based on Franz Werfel’s bestseller novel.
The powerful duo will take their places at the ANCA Grassroots ‘Film and Arts’ panel alongside Los Angeles based music producer Sebu Simonian of Capital Cities, Emmy-Award-winning filmmaker Bared Maronian, famed artist and comedian Vahe Berberian, and panel moderator Aram Kouyoumdjian, award-winning playwritght and, amongst others.
The successful ANCA Grassroots Conference will return on Thanksgiving Weekend, this time in the heart of Hollywood at Loews Hotel. The event brings together academicians, artists, historians, legal experts and political officials who will make presentations about varied topics regarding the myriad aspects of the pursuit of Hye Tad.
The conference is open to the community, but requires registration. Register now by visiting itsmyseat.com /ANCAWR or by calling 818.500.1918. To obtain updates on the conference, like the ANCA Western Region Facebook page at Facebook.com/ANCAWesternRegion or visit ancawr.org.
The ANCA Grassroots Conference will bookend the annual ANCA Gala Banquet, which will take place on Saturday, November 30 at the Roy Dolby Ballroom and will feature a special menu created for the banquet by renowned chef Wolfgang Puck.
This year’s honorees include, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Primate of Artsakh Archbishop Barkev Martirosyan, Legendary Coach Jerry Tarkanian, Lifelong Philanthropist Manas Boujikian, Assemblymember Katcho Achadjian, and Activist and Filmmaker Ara Soudjian.
The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

Rep. Schiff Urges Obama to Allow Orphan Rug Display

November 13, 2013 By administrator

WASHINGTON—On Tuesday, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) once again called on the Obama Administration to allow exhibition of the “Armenian Orphan Rug” at the Smithsonian Museum. The rug, woven by orphans of the Armenian Genocide in 1920, was presented to President Calvin Coolidge in 1925 as thanks for U.S. assistance during the genocide. The rug – which has been in storage at the White House for decades – was supposed to be released for exhibition in a Smithsonian event for the launch of Hagop Martin Deranian’s new book President Calvin Coolidge and the Armenian Orphan Rug. Unfortunately, the event was cancelled when the White House refused to release the rug for display.
“The decision by the Administration to block display of the Armenian Genocide rug is as inexplicable, as it is hurtful to the Armenian community,” Schiff explained. “The rug is not only a symbol of the resilience of the Armenian people through their darkest days, it also serves as a tangible expression of the inherent truth that not only were 1.5 million people killed in the first genocide of the 20th Century, but that the American government was a central player in efforts to call attention to the plight of the Armenian people and provide relief to survivors.”
The Administration has been reluctant to call the Armenian Genocide what it was, a genocide, and this latest decision to keep the rug out of the Smithsonian comes without explanation. Schiff continued, “The rug deserves to be on display and the millions affected by the genocide deserve the chance to see it – it’s my hope that the Administration will decide to allow the rug, a symbol worthy of the Smithsonian, to be released.”
Schiff and Rep. David Valadao (R-CA) sent a letter, along with 31 other Members, to President Obama urging him to allow exhibition of the rug. The full letter is below:
***
Dear Mr. President:
As Members of Congress who represent America’s Armenian community, we write to inquire about numerous reports that the White House has blocked the exhibition of an important Armenian Genocide-era icon of shared American and Armenian history scheduled to open December 16th; the “Armenian Orphan Rug.”
This historic rug was hand-woven by orphans of the Armenian Genocide in an American-sponsored orphanage run by an U.S. charity created by an act of Congress. The rug, which has over 4,000,000 hand-tied knots, was presented, in 1925 to President Calvin Coolidge as a symbol of gratitude for American aid and generosity. President Coolidge noted that, “The rug has a place of honor in the White House where it will be a daily symbol of goodwill on earth.” The presentation of the rug to President Coolidge enjoyed wide publicity including in The New York Times and resulted in millions of dollars being raised for humanitarian assistance.
The Armenian Orphan Rug is a piece of American history and it belongs to the American people. For over a decade, Armenian American organizations have sought the public display of the rug and have requested the White House and the State Department grant their request on numerous occasions. Unfortunately, Armenian Americans have yet to have their requests granted.
We urge you to release this American treasure for exhibition. We look forward to working with you to ensure this important piece of American and Armenian history is publicly displayed and we eagerly await your response.
Sincerely,
Members of Congress

Armenia Should Renounce Turkish Protocols Long Before Genocide Centennial

November 13, 2013 By administrator

By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier

Expecting a public relations nightmare during the Armenian Genocide Centennial, Turkish officials are anxious to prevent further damage to their country’s already tarnished reputation.

Even though they have no intention to open the border with Armenia, Turkey’s leaders are pretending to do so by constantly issuing fake conciliatory statements. By falsely claiming that Turkey is in the process of patching up its differences with Armenia, Ankara’s hidden agenda is to discourage additional countries from recognizing the Armenian Genocide.

However, given Azerbaijan’s paranoid reaction to any talk of Turkey opening its border with Armenia, Turkish officials are forced to retreat by warning that the Armenia-Turkey border would remain closed, unless ‘progress’ is made on the Karabagh (Artsakh) issue.

Such contradictory Turkish statements have been issued countless times, ever since Armenia and Turkey signed Protocols in 2009 to open their mutual border and establish diplomatic relations. As recently as last week, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told a closed session of the Turkish Parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee that preparations are underway to open the border with Armenia. When confronted by an opposition parliamentarian about Turkey’s true intentions, Davutoglu quickly reversed himself, stating that Armenia must first withdraw from Karabagh before the border could be opened.

The Foreign Minister made similar remarks a month ago while visiting Switzerland, when he announced that Turkey was looking for “creative ideas” to improve its relations with Armenia. Davutoglu’s creative or rather clever ploy is to avoid looking like an obstructionist, while making excuses for his country’s refusal to ratify the Protocols.

Back in 2009, the Turkish government appeared eager to ratify the Protocols which included various extraneous matters, including the formation of a committee of historians to study archival documents on the Armenian Genocide. When Azerbaijan vehemently objected to Turkish plans to open the border with Armenia, Turkey announced that it could no longer ratify the Protocols, even though it was clearly in its national interest to do so. Thus, despite its claims of being a major regional power, Turkey caved in to Azerbaijan’s veto. During his remarks in the Turkish Parliament on November 6, Davutoglu sheepishly reiterated that his country would open its border with Armenia only after obtaining Azerbaijan’s permission.

Clearly embarrassed by this leak to the press, a Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman denied that Davutoglu had made such a statement. This is not a credible denial as Turkish officials have made similar statements many times before. One plausible explanation for reviving the prospect of opening the border and railway link to Armenia could be Turkey’s intent to pressure the newly-elected President of Georgia who refuses to support the long-planned Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway which was expected to circumvent Armenia.

To put an end to continuous Turkish exploitation of the Protocols, Pres. Serzh Sargsyan should carry out his promise of three years ago, when he warned that unless Turkey ‘shortly’ ratifies the Protocols, he would reconsider his position on this issue, implying that Armenia would withdraw from this agreement. Since the Protocols are still not ratified four years after they were signed, Pres. Sargsyan should declare them null and void.

Understandably, Armenian officials are reluctant to take such a drastic step, as they are concerned that the major powers would blame them for the Protocols’ failure. Armenia would prefer that the Turkish side be the first to withdraw from the Protocols, and thereby bear the blame for their collapse. Turkish officials could be playing the same blame game, by waiting for Armenia to be the first to withdraw.

In my view, Armenia can no longer afford to wait. With the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide less than 18 months away, Armenia’s President should do what he promised three years ago and withdraw his government’s signature from the ill-fated Protocols. Armenia could not be blamed for this action, as Turkish officials have repeatedly announced that they have no intention of ratifying the Protocols.

Not surprisingly, Davutoglu also declared last week that Turkish efforts to counter Armenian plans for the 100th anniversary of the genocide are moving forward ‘at full speed.’ In order not to allow Turkey to undermine worldwide Armenian commemorations for the Genocide Centennial, Armenia’s leaders must renounce the Protocols long before April 24, 2015.

Furthermore, given the Turkish government’s century-old intransigence to acknowledge its culpability for the Genocide and refusal to make appropriate amends, Armenian officials should announce that they plan to seek justice, at long last, by applying to local, regional and international courts.

Turkish snake oil salesman Davutoglu on the road again with his lies and deceptions to sabotage Genocide Centennial 2015

November 12, 2013 By administrator

MFA: Turkish paper report on Swiss backing in Karabakh issue “absurd”

November 12, 2013 – 17:47 AMT
Armenian Foreign Ministry spokesman refused to comment on the Today’s Zaman report suggesting Turkey requested support from Switzerland to help resolve the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and mend ties with Yerevan.
“Absurd reports from absurd sources needn’t be commented on,” Tigran Balayan said.
During a visit to Switzerland in mid-October, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu told Swiss officials that Turkey is ready to normalize its relations with Armenia if the latter ‘withdraws from Karabakh’, Today’s Zaman quoted sources as saying.
The Swiss officials responded positively to Davutoğlu’s proposal, according to the sources.
Davutoğlu pointed out that relations with Armenia “are important for Turkey, which is trying to find new ideas and solutions to the existing problems”. He hinted that “Turkey will increase its studies for better relations with its neighbor in the coming days,” the sources said.
Turkey is particularly aiming to normalize relations with Armenia before 2015, the centennial of the Armenian Genocide, Today’s Zaman quoted Foreign Ministry sources as saying.
A senior Turkish official told Today’s Zaman that Turkey closed its borders with Armenia “not because of Nagorno Karabakh but because of the adjacent territories.”
Azerbaijan said “it would not oppose Turkey opening its border with Armenia if Yerevan leaves five of the seven adjacent regions,” according to the official, who also said that Yerevan “accepted the condition.”

U.S. Congressmen call for Armenian Orphan Rug display (gifted to President Calvin Coolidge by 400 armenian Orphans)

November 8, 2013 By administrator

November 8, 2013 – 11:03 AMT

A bipartisan group of U.S. Representatives – including House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), joined with Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-CA) and David Valadao (R-CA) in calling upon the White House to reverse its decision to block the public display of a rug woven by Armenian orphans and gifted to President Calvin Coolidge in appreciation for U.S. humanitarian assistance following Ottoman Turkey’s genocide of over 1.5 million Armenians between 1915-1923, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

The Congressional letter comes in the wake of Washington Post and National Public Radio reports and a series of Capitol Hill inquiries regarding the White House’s abrupt and unexplained reversal of its agreement to lend the rug for a December 16 exhibition at the Smithsonian Institute, organized in cooperation with the Armenian Cultural Foundation and the Armenian Rug Society. In an interview with Public Radio International (PRI), Washington Post Art Critic Philip Kennicott noted that while the White House has not offered an explanation for the reversal in decision, it is likely due to the U.S. government’s deference to Turkey’s international campaign of genocide denial.

In the Congressional letter they spearheaded, Reps. Valadao and Schiff, who are the lead sponsors of the Armenian Genocide Resolution (H.Res.227), noted: “The Armenian Orphan Rug is a shared piece of American and Armenian history that belongs to the American people. For over a decade, Armenian-American organizations have repeatedly asked the White House and the State Department to allow the rug to be displayed publicly. Unfortunately, these requests have not been granted. ”

“We join with Armenian Americans from across the country in thanking Reps. Schiff and Valadao for their leadership and in expressing our appreciation to each and every supporter of this principled effort to encourage our White House to reject Turkey’s decades-long veto on the display of the Armenian Orphan Rug and – more broadly – for our President to rise above Ankara’s gag-rule on the proper condemnation and commemoration of this still unpunished crime against all humanity,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian.

In addition to Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-CA) and David Valadao (R-CA), the Valadao-Schiff letter was signed by: Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA); Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY); Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Sander Levin (D-MI); Armenian Caucus Co-Chairmen Michael Grimm (R-NY) and Frank Pallone (D-NJ); the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Co-Chairmen Frank Wolf (R-VA) and James McGovern (D-MA); and Representatives Tony Cardenas (D-CA), David Cicilline (D-RI), Jim Costa (D-CA), Jeff Denham (R-CA), John Dingell (D-MI), Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Rush Holt (D-NJ), Mike Honda (D-CA), Jim Langevin (D-RI), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Devin Nunes (R-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Raul Ruiz (D-CA), John Sarbanes (D-MD), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Aaron Schock (R-IL), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Jackie Speier (D-CA), John Tierney (D-MA), and Dina Titus (D-NV).

The ANCA has, over the past several weeks, organized a grassroots campaign, worked with Members of Congress, and consulted with the Administration, making the case to all relevant stakeholders for the prominent and permanent public display of this historic rug.

The Armenian Orphan Rug measures 11′ 7″ x 18′ 5″ and is comprised of 4,404,206 individual knots. It took Armenian girls in the Ghazir Orphanage of Near East Relief 10 months to weave. The rug was delivered to the President Coolidge on December 4, 1925, in time for Christmas, with a label on the back of the rug, which reads “IN GOLDEN RULE GRATITUDE TO PRESIDENT COOLIDGE.”

According to Missak Kelechian, an expert on this topic, the gift of the Armenian Orphan Rug was widely covered in U.S. media, including in the New York Times in 1925 and the Washington Post in 1926.

Turkeys Davutoglu is playing another trick on Armenia to sabotage Genocide Centennial 2015 (If we convince Azerbaijan, we could make a surprise to Armenia)

November 7, 2013 By administrator

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has delivered a speech in the Committee on Foreign Relations of the parliament.

Turkey’s Aksam newspaper reports that Davutoglu also replied to an MP’s question about the likelihood of opening the Armenian-Turkish border.

The Turkish FM confirmed that they are carrying out activities in Igdir region and on the railway in order to open the border ahead of 2015.

Davutoglu also said that he is due to visit Azerbaijan in the near future and if he manages to convince Baku, they could make a surprise to Armenia.

“If Armenia withdraws troops from Karabakh, we will open both the Armenian-Turkish border and the railway,” he noted.

World Council of Churches to Observe Genocide Centennial

November 7, 2013 By administrator

GENEVA—The World Council of Churches (WCC) has addressed the issue of the Armenian Genocide in international fora on several occasions. During the 1979 Session of the United Nations Human Rights Commission, the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) raised the question of the need for recognition of the Armenian genocide by the UN.

The 6th Assembly of the WCC held in Vancouver, recognized the importance of the need to continue to address the effects of the Armenian genocide in appropriate contexts. A minute adopted at the Vancouver assembly stated, “The silence of the world community and deliberate efforts to deny even historical facts have been consistent sources of anguish and growing despair to the Armenian people, the Armenian churches and many others.”

The role of the WCC in “enabling the Armenian churches to speak out and work towards the recognition of the first genocide of the 20th century” was recognized by the Armenian churches over the years.

Prior to the 10th Assembly of the WCC the Armenian churches reminded the WCC General Secretary of the historical reality that the 10th Assembly will be held on the threshold of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in 2015. Requests have been made by the leaders of the Armenian churches for the WCC to initiate programs to observe the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in appropriate ways, the Armenian Catholicos of Cilicia reports.

Therefore, the 10th Assembly of the World Council of Churches meeting in Busan, Republic of Korea, from 30 October to 8 November 2013, requests the general secretary to:

A. Organize in 2015, around the commemorative 100th anniversary date 24 April 2015, an international conference in Geneva on the recognition of and reparation for the Armenian Genocide with the participation, among others, of WCC member churches, international organizations, jurists, historians and human rights defenders.;

B. Organize an ecumenical prayer service commemorating the victims of the Armenian Genocide at the Cathedral of Geneva in conjunction with the international conference; and

C. Invite member churches of the WCC to pray for the memory of the Armenian martyrs around the dates of the international conference and also for recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

Israel Offers Its Assistance in Recalling Armenian Genocide

November 5, 2013 By administrator

Author Yossi Eli and Dalia Mazori

Information and Diaspora Minister Yuli Edelstein visited this week [Aug. 24] the Armenian Genocide Museum in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. During the visit, he suggested that Tsitsernakaberd, the Armenian museum, cooperate with Yad Vashem.

According to a statement published on the official site of the Genocide Museum in Yerevan, Edelstein said during his visit to the museum: “I offered the Genocide Museum-Institute administration to cooperate with Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem. Both our nations have become victims of a horrible crime against humanity. I think the two institutions will cooperate quite effectively in terms of selection of exhibits and organization of pavilions.”

During the visit, Edelstein even laid a wreath on the memorial commemorating the victims, and said that while Israel has not passed a law recognizing the Armenian Genocide, “there is no one in Israel who denies the Armenian Holocaust.” This is a dramatic statement for a government minister — over the years, Israel has preferred not to recognize the Armenian Genocide to preserve sound diplomatic relations with Turkey.

When he was asked on a local radio show how the issue will progress, Edelstein replied: “This question is being discussed by the Israeli Knesset, there have been decisions, but there is no national law [recognizing the genocide]. I think that in Israel, when it comes to this issue of a shared history, you won’t find people who deny the Armenian genocide.”

Edelstein was referring to a discussion held last September around the time of the cancelation of a security agreement with Turkey. Over the course of the discussion in the Knesset’s Education Committee, which dealt in the Turkish massacre of the Armenians, a representative from the Foreign Affairs Ministry presented her position on the sensitive issue, saying: “This issue, in the present atmosphere, is likely to cause a deterioration in our relations with Turkey. The relations with Turkey are fragile and very sensitive right now, and there’s no reason to take them beyond the red line they are at right now. The matter should be pursued wisely. Such a decision at this stage is likely to have very difficult strategic implications.”

Yad Vashem said in response: “Yad Vashem has cooperated for years with actors and institutions who deal in the commemoration of genocides. In the past, we even hosted delegations from Rwanda, of educators and heads of commemoration institutes, who came in order to learn about Yad Vashem’s commemoration methods. If they reach out to us, we will cooperate in the same spirit.”

Islamized Armenians in Turkey represent age-long assimilation policy

November 4, 2013 By administrator

Why Mr. Taner Akçam, in Turkey he called alleged Armenian genocide yet in USA he allays refer to Armenian Genocide is he fearful of his life?

Turkish and Armenian academics speak at the Islamized Armenians Conference, held in İstanbul on Saturday. (Photo: Today’s Zaman)

3 November 2013 /LAMİYA ADİLGIZI, İSTANBUL

The Islamization of Armenians in Turkey is the product of a long-term and systematic political strategy of assimilating and Turkifying the Armenian community, according to documents from the late Ottoman era, said Taner Akçam, a Turkish-German historian and sociologist, at the Conference on Islamized Armenians held in İstanbul over the weekend.

“The term ‘genocide’ has always been defined in relation to the Holocaust. The genocide of European Jews has always been at the center of discussions. Whether a mass killing should be called genocide or not has always been decided by comparison with the Holocaust. If the case resembles the Holocaust it is a genocide; if not, it cannot be a genocide,” said Akçam on Saturday, adding that the same applies to the mass killing of Armenians that some call the Armenian genocide. The Conference on Islamized Armenians was held by the Hrant Dink Foundation, which is named after a Turkish-Armenian journalist who was fatally shot outside his office by an extremist in 2007.

Many academics and analysts came together at İstanbul’s Boğaziçi University for a three-day conference which addressed the overlooked and unknown stories of Armenians who converted to Islam since 1915, when Armenians say the Ottoman Turks began to commit an alleged genocide against more than 1 million Armenians.

Speaking at the conference’s opening ceremony, Rakel Dink, the widow of Hrant Dink, illuminated the conference’s purpose, saying, “We are going to open the pages of history that have so far never been questioned and hear and witness the riddles that have never been put into words.”

“We never want to hear what they have done. We never talk about what has happened to them and how it occurred. Our conscience was only able to deny the genocide,” Dink said in her opening speech, adding that the facts should not be kept hidden in the dark.

Dink’s widow emphasized that Dink was paying special attention to the issue of Islamized Armenians, saying, “Hrant wanted this issue to be discussed, not only for the ones who passed away but for the ones who are alive.” There is a claim that Dink was killed because he began to research Islamized Armenians across the Ottoman Empire.

Addressing the conference, Akçam said that as the alleged Armenian genocide had for a long time been researched and defined in connection with the Holocaust, the very important issue of assimilation was disregarded and the events were understood only in terms of the number of dead and exiled Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

The alleged Armenian genocide is a sensitive issue in Turkey, as Turks and Armenians have not reached a common understanding of events. While Armenians all over the world urge the international community to recognize the 1915 massacre of Armenians as genocide, Turkey denies that those deaths constituted genocide. Ankara says both Christian Armenians and Muslim Turks died in large numbers during the war while the Ottoman Empire collapsed.

Akçam, who is the first Turkish academic to acknowledge and openly discuss the topic, said that the Armenian community has been crushed by the denial of the “genocide” by the Turkish government, and that for quite a while Armenian academics have studied the issue by drawing parallels between the Armenian genocide and the Holocaust. “And thus they have ignored and separated some parts of the genocide such as forcible conversions to Islam, forced relocation of Armenian kids into the orphanages and accommodation of Armenians in certain regions of the country, as they did not fit into the framework of the Holocaust,” Akçam said. He also added that the Turkish policies of assimilation for Armenians were not considered systematic for a long time, as Armenians who converted from Christianity to Islam were even moved from modern Turkey to other parts of the empire. “However, assimilation was an integral part of the genocide since its start,” he underlined.

In Armenian society, those who converted from Christianity are generally not considered to be Armenians. Sergey Vardanian, an Armenian scholar from Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, began with this topic in his speech.

Saying that the history of Armenians has been a “history of victimization,” Vardanian told the audience about the Islamized Armenians of Hemşin, a town in Rize province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. He said that Hemşin Armenians were forcibly converted to Islam, and that they converted “in order to survive.” However, “they have never forgotten that they are Armenian, and they never married with other Muslim groups,” according to Vardanian.

Neither diaspora Armenians nor those in Armenia have fully studied and discussed Islamized Armenians yet. However, academic research has begun in recent years, and the Conference on Islamized Armenians aims to raise public awareness of the issue and will be continuing until Nov. 4.