Armenia’s capital to host 12th conference of the International Association of Genocide Scholars

July 7, 2015 By administrator

Armenia’s capital Yerevan will host the 12th conference of the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS), on July 8-12, with the participation of 130 delegates from about 30 countries.

Director of the Armenian Genocide Museum Institute Hayk Demoyan told a press conference on Tuesday that an unprecedented number of reports on the Armenian Genocide is expected at the upcoming conference.

“About 20 reports are expected to be delivered this year,” Mr Demoyan said. Being comparative analyses, the reports will be to Armenians advantage.

Donna-Lee Frieze, IAGS First Vice-President, who participated in the press conference, said that this is the best way of making people know about genocide. Numerous papers have been published in recent years, particularly on the Armenian Genocide, she said.

Revolutionary academic conference on the Armenian Genocide in Istanbul

March 19, 2015 By administrator

Researchers around the world will gather in Istanbul Bilgi University April 26, 2015 to participate in an international conference titled “The Armenian Genocide: Concepts and Comparative Perspectives” and co-sponsored by the University of Istanbul Bilgi, Foundation of Turkish History (Tarih Vakfı) and Chair of Modern Armenian History at the University of California, Los Angeles.

The conference will be part of the series of a week of activities commemorating the centennial of the Armenian Genocide in Istanbul organized by DurDe a Turkish organization of human rights, and Project 2015, a group based in the US to help Armenians organize visits Turkey for historical commemoration.

“This is a very important opportunity for researchers worldwide to address critical aspects of the facts and history of the Armenian genocide here in Istanbul, 100 years after it began,” said Bülent Bilmez President Bilgi the History Department and the Foundation of history in Turkey. “We hope that talking openly about the common history of Armenians and other peoples of Turkey, something that has not always been possible, help our society to come to terms with the past.”

Among the scholars participating in the conference include Norman Naimark, Jay Winter, Dirk Moses Müge Göçek, Cathie Carmichael, Keith Watenpaugh, Uğur Ümit Üngör and Mehmet Polatel. The rally will probe the concept of genocide in comparative perspective, exploring the forcible transfer of children, and consider how the genocide was mapped in historiography and immortalized in the collective and historical memory.

“For those who have suggested that historians examine the history of the Armenian genocide we say,” We come to Istanbul to do just that, with other historians in Turkey, “said Richard Hovannisian Sebouh Aslanian and co-chairs of the Chair in Modern Armenian History at the History Department of the University of California, Los Angeles. “A frank and open discussion on the historical record is our way of contributing to the knowledge and education on the Armenian genocide in Turkey.”
Thursday, March 19, 2015,
Stéphane © armenews.com

Turkey ’Caliphate conference’ held in İstanbul

March 4, 2015 By administrator

Caliphate conference’ held in İstanbul

A “caliphate conference” organized by a magazine named “Radical Change” took place in İstanbul on Tuesday, with executives of the outlawed fundamentalist organization Hizb ut-Tahrir (Party of Liberation) in attendance as speakers.

Members of Hizb ut-Tahrir from across Turkey and other countries participated the event, which marked the 92nd anniversary of the abolition of the caliphate.

The conference held in the Bağlarbaşı Cultural Center in the Üsküdar district saw a dispute over posters of Atatürk — the founder of the Turkish Republic — that were hung on the venue’s walls.

Mehmet Pabak, one of the speakers, defended the idea of caliphate and criticized the Atatürk posters hung on the walls of the hall. He said: “Even the existence of caliphate itself used to be a means for all Muslims to stand in unity. They did not have tolerance for this. They had the caliphate revoked, leading to a separation. Even when we are talking about this, we cannot be absolved from the shadow of those who revoked the caliphate. There are pictures of him on both sides [of the hall]. I am addressing the mayoral administrations that impose this: These halls do not belong to your fathers. They were built with taxes you took from us. Hence, these places should be neutral. But, the cruelty is pursued. This is the pressure from the official ideology.”

Other speakers also mentioned the Atatürk posters and stated that the organizers had argued with the manager of the hall over the posters but he refused to remove them.

Ahmet Kalkan, another speaker, likened weekly ceremonies at schools, in which the national anthem is sang in front of Atatürk statues to “Muslims being forced into idolatry.”

During the event, Mahmut Kar, one of the Hizb ut-Tahrir executives, responded to questions from reporters. Kar was asked a question about alleged links between the radical group and the Ergenekon terrorist organization, which is accused of planning a military coup against the government. In response, Kar said: “The efforts to associate the Hizb ut-Tahrir with Ergenekon had a certain logic. Hizb ut-Tahrir was presenting the society with its view of Islam. Meanwhile, others presented the ideas of moderate Islam, the alliance of civilizations and dialogue between religions. The youth of Hizb ut-Tahrir inflicted atrocities. More than 500 of them were jailed over the past 12 years. At the moment, cases against 200 of them are being handled by the Supreme Court of Appeals. A total of 900 years of prison sentence is sought for these 200 people.”

Kar also made anti-Semitic remarks, slamming President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the current government for Turkey’s large trade volume with Israel.

Cal State Northridge to host conference on Armenian Genocide

January 17, 2015 By administrator

California State University, Northridge’s Armenian Studies Program will host a one-day conference on Saturday, Jan. 31, in the Grand Salon at the University Student Union.

“The Armenian Genocide: Accounting and Accountability” is dedicated to the generations of 1915 and 2015 as a part of the United Armenian Council of Los Angeles’ Armenian Genocide Centennial Commemorative Events.

“The significance of hosting the conference at CSUN is three-fold,” said Vahram Shemmassian, director of CSUN’s Armenian Studies program within the Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures. “CSUN has the largest number of students of Armenian background outside of Armenia, as far as four-year universities are concerned. The greater Los Angeles area is home to the second-largest community of the worldwide Armenian diaspora. Lastly, the conference also aims to further expose CSUN to the Armenian community at large, hopefully attracting more friends and supporters as a result.”

The morning session will include two panels. The first panel, “Language as a Victim,” will be moderated by Hagop Gulludjian and will feature the following speakers and topics: Vartan Matiossian, “Pleading no Context: On Uses and Abuses of the Word Yeghern;” professor Barlow Der Mugrdechian, “Western Armenian Language and Literature in Exile: Genocide and Its Consequences;” and Shushan Karapetian, “The Burden of Language as a Moral Obligation.”

The second panel will explore “Teaching Genocide,” with Rubina Peroomian moderating. Hasmig Baran will talk about “Content and Pedagogy of Genocide Education in the 21st Century: The Armenian Case”; Roxanne Makasdjian will talk about “Armenian Genocide Education in Secondary Schools Today;” and Kori Street will talk about “Educating for Change: Using Testimonies in Teaching about Genocide.”

Levon Marashlian will moderate the third panel, “Those Who Were Forced to Assimilate.” It will feature the following speakers and subjects: Khatchig Mouradian on “Un-Hiding the Past: Myth-Making and the ‘Hidden Armenians’ of Turkey;” Elyse Semerdjian on “‘The Girl with the Cross Tattoo:’ Field Notes on Crypto-Armenians;” and Vahram Shemmassian on “The Fate of Captive Armenian Genocide Survivors in Syria.”

The Armenian Bar Association will conduct the fourth panel, titled “Legal Responses to Genocide-Related Liabilities.” Garo Ghazarian will introduce the panelists. Armen K. Hovannisian will moderate the panel. The speakers and their topics include: Saro Kerkonian on “Justice for Genocide: Opportunities and Challenges in United States Courts;” Edvin Minassian on “Justice for Genocide: Opportunities and Challenges in Turkey’s Courts;” and Karnig Kerkonian on “Justice for Genocide: Opportunities and Challenges in International Courts.” The conference will conclude with a commentary by Richard G. Hovannisian.

The Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures at CSUN is co-sponsoring the event, along with the United Armenian Council of Los Angeles, the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research, The Knights of Vartan – Los Angeles County Chapters, the Armenian Bar Association and the Armenian General Benevolent Union. The Ararat-Eskijian Museum of Mission Hills will exhibit American Near East Relief posters during the conference.

Robertson, Fisk & Geoffrey Robertson to Speak at Genocide Centennial Conference in New York

December 10, 2014 By administrator

Journalist Robert Fisk (left) and jurist Geoffrey Robertson
NEW YORK (Armenian Weekly)–Jurist Geoffrey Robertson and journalist Robert Fisk are among the confirmed speakers at “Responsibility 2015,” the international conference marking the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide, to be held on March 13-15, 2015, at New York’s Marriott Marquis Hotel.

Geoffrey Robertson is an international jurist, human rights lawyer, and academic. His latest book is An Inconvenient Genocide: Who Remembers the Armenians? In recent years, he has been particularly prominent in the defense of Julian Assange and WikiLeaks. He has also represented author Salman Rushdie, and prosecuted General Augusto Pinochet. In 2008, he was appointed by United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon as a “distinguished jurist” member of the UN’s Justice Council, which nominates and supervises UN judges. His memoir, The Justice Game, has sold over 150,000 copies.

Robert Fisk is the Middle East correspondent of the Independent newspaper. He holds numerous awards for journalism, including two Amnesty International UK Press Awards and seven British International Journalist of the Year awards. During the 30 years he has been reporting on the Middle East, he has covered every major event in the region, from the Algerian Civil War to the Iranian Revolution, from the hostage crisis in Beirut to the Iran-Iraq War, from the Russian invasion of Afghanistan to Israel’s invasions of Lebanon, and from the Gulf War to the invasion and ongoing war in Iraq. His books include The Great War for Civilization: the Conquest of the Middle East.

The three-day conference will feature a lineup of prominent historians, policymakers, authors, and artists from around the globe. The program will consist of concurrent morning and afternoon panels and discussions focusing on justice and reparations for cases of genocide, the responsibility to protect (R2P), genocide research, activism for justice and accountability, building solidarity, and artistic responses to genocide and mass violence.

The “Responsibility 2015” conference is being organized by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Eastern U.S. Centennial Committee, under the auspices of the Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee of America, Eastern Region.

Evening sessions bringing together policymakers, political leaders, artists, and celebrities known for their activism and humanitarian work will highlight the theme of responsibility to confront past injustices and struggle towards preventing new ones.

Photography and art exhibits with the theme of survival will be held at the same venue for the duration of the conference.

The organizing committee is comprised of the following scholars and activists: Khatchig Mouradian and Hayg Oshagan, co-chairs; George Aghjayan, Kim Hekimian, Antranig Kasbarian, and Henry Theriault.

Iran, A conference dedicated to the 400th anniversary of the creation of the Armenian town of Julfa Nor in Isfahan

October 28, 2014 By administrator

Anniversaire the 400th anniversary of the creation of the Armenian town of Julfa Nor, on the outskirts of Isfahan, was particularly marked by a three-day conference held in the community center Ararat, which traditionally hosts major events punctuating the cultural and community life of the Armenian community. The conference opened on October 21 in the presence of the governor and deputy governor of Isfahan, the head of religious affairs

Paris: Conference of the Turkish author and journalist Hasan Cemal

October 24, 2014 By administrator

Friday, October 24 at 20:30 at the AGBU

Hasan Cemal, grand-son of the Young Turk leader, Cemal Pasha will give a lecture on October 24 at 20:30 at the cultural center Alex Manoogian AGBU (118 rue de Courcelles, 75017 Paris).

Armenian Genocide conference to be held in eastern Turkey

September 30, 2014 By administrator

YEREVAN. – The only wish of the Armenians living in Mus, Turkey, is to have an Armenian-language teacher.

Non-pro-government Prosperous Armenia Party MP Aragats Akhoyan, who is also vice-chairman of the National Council of Western Armenians, told about the aforementioned to reporters on Tuesday.

Akhoyan recently returned from Mus, where there is an Armenian community again.

“Aside from meetings with the residents of Mus, we also met with the mayors of Van, Diyarbakir (Tigranakert). The last two mayors were just elected, but they were from the same party [i.e., the pro-Kurdish “Peace and Democracy Party” (BDP)]. They promised to be more active than previously.

“As for the Armenian community of Mus, it was created with great difficulty,” the MP said.

In his words, a major conference, which will be devoted to the centennial of the Armenian Genocide, will be convened in eastern Turkey.

“Its [working] language will be Armenian, [and it will be held] in one of the largest cities in Western Armenia [i.e., eastern Turkey]; I can’t say more at this time,” Aragats Akhoyan stated.

AGMI to Host 12th Conference of International Association of Genocide Scholars

September 17, 2014 By administrator

The Armenian Genocide Museum and Institute will host a conference of the International Association of Genocide Scholars in 2015

The International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) will hold its twelfth meeting in Yerevan from 8 to 12 July, 2015, hosted by the Armenian Genocide Museum & Institute (AGMI). Director of the AGMI Hayk Demoyan will serve as Local Conference Chair. The conference theme is “Comparative Analysis of 20th Century Genocides.”

2015 is an important year for all Armenians worldwide in terms of commemoration of the centennial of the beginning of the Armenian Genocide. The Armenian Genocide is considered as the first genocide of the 20th century and in many ways served as a template for subsequent genocidal crimes.

2015 is also the year of 70th anniversary of the end of WWII and the Holocaust. Therefore, it is a significant time to analyze both crimes and all genocides of the 20th century in global and comparative perspectives. The event will bring together hundreds of renowned genocide scholars from all around the world.

The International Association of Genocide Scholars recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1997 and was awarded the Armenian President’s 2010 Prize for considerable contribution to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

The International Association of Genocide Scholars is a global, interdisciplinary, non-partisan organization that seeks to further research and teaching about the nature, causes, and consequences of genocide, and advance policy studies on genocide prevention.

The Association, founded in 1994, meets regularly to consider comparative research, important new work, case studies, the links between genocide and other human rights violations, and prevention and punishment of genocide. The Association holds biennial conferences and co-publishes the scholarly journal Genocide Studies and Prevention.

A central aim of the Association is to draw academics, activists, artists, genocide survivors, journalists, jurists, public policy makers, and other colleagues into the interdisciplinary study of genocide, with the goal of prevention.

Canada to host conference on Genocide & mass crimes in October 1-3

May 22, 2014 By administrator

May 22, 2014 – 15:06 AMT

University of Moncton in Canada will host an international conference on Armenian Genocide and mass crimes timed to the centenary of the 1915 massacres on October 1-3, Fabula said.

The event will focus on the collective memory of the Genocide and mass crimes, as well as Genocide-related historical, cultural, social and political issues.

The conference will also discuss the role of the Ottoman Empire in the World War I and the Genocide, international assistance, charity missions and organizations.

With Armenian Genocide issue as the focus of the conference, the discussions may also have a comparative aspect.

Représentations du génocide des Arméniens et des crimes de masse

http://www.fabula.org

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The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres, and deportations involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, the Italian Chamber of Deputies, majority of U.S. states, parliaments of Greece, Cyprus, Argentina, Belgium and Wales, National Council of Switzerland, Chamber of Commons of Canada, Polish Sejm, Vatican, European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.