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Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email [email protected]
Internet www.anca.org
PRESS RELEASE
April 9, 2007
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
ANCA CRITICIZES TURKEY FOR BLOCKING
U.N. EXHIBIT ON THE RWANDA GENOCIDE
-- Turkey's Campaign to Deny the Armenian Genocide Prevents
Opening of Educational Exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide
WASHINGTON, DC - The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA)
today sharply condemned the Turkish government for blocking the
opening of a United Nations exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide due to
an indirect mention of the Armenian Genocide in one of the
exhibit's display panels.
"Sadly, this is only the most recent example of how Turkey's
campaign to deny the Armenian Genocide perpetuates the cycle of
genocide - making the world a more dangerous place and future
genocides more likely," said ANCA Executive Director Aram
Hamparian.
The Associate Press reported earlier today that the United Nations,
bowing to Turkish protests, has delayed the opening of the exhibit,
organized by the Aegis Trust, in the international organization's
highly trafficked visitor's lobby. The Turkish mission had
specifically registered its objections to a reference in the
exhibit concerning the origin of the word "genocide," which
mentioned that Raphael Lemkin, the international lawyer and human
rights activist who coined this term, was influenced by the crimes
committed against the Armenians and other mass killings.
Commenting on the exhibit's postponement, James Smith, the chief
executive of the British-based Aegis Trust, said, "If we can't get
this right, it undermines all the values of the U.N. It undermines
everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in terms of preventing
(genocide). . . You can't learn the lessons from history if you're
going to sweep all of that history under the carpet. And what about
accountability? What about ending impunity if you're going to hide
part of the truth? It makes a mockery of all of this."
The full text of the Associate Press article is provided below.
#####
UN exhibition postponed after Turkey objects to reference to
Armenians
The Associated Press
Monday, April 9, 2007
UNITED NATIONS: A U.N. exhibition on the 1994 Rwanda genocide,
scheduled to be opened Monday by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, has
been postponed because of Turkish objections to a reference to the
murder of a million Armenians in Turkey during World War I.
James Smith, chief executive of the British-based Aegis Trust,
which works to prevent genocide and helped organize the photo
exhibition, said the U.N. Department of Public Information approved
the contents and it was put up on Thursday.
A Turkish diplomat complained about the reference to the Armenian
murders, he said, and Armenia's U.N. Ambassador Armen Martirosyan
went to see the new Undersecretary for Public Information Kiyotaka
Akasaka and they agreed to remove the words "in Turkey."
Martirosyan said Akasaka invited him to the exhibition's opening,
but late Sunday "I was informed that the opening would be
postponed, or delayed, or even canceled." He blamed Turkish
"censorship" and the country's refusal "to come to terms with their
own history."
On Monday, the exhibition in the visitor's lobby had been turned
around so it could not be seen by the public. Smith said he was
still hoping for a diplomatic solution to the dispute.
"We are very disappointed about it because for us, this was meant
to be about the Rwandan genocide, and the lessons from the Rwandan
genocide," and to engage the secretary-general on the pledge by
world leaders to protect civilians from genocide, war crimes and
ethnic cleansing, which Smith said was not happening in Sudan's
conflict-wracked Darfur region.
U.N. associate spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed Turkey complained
about the exhibition, but he said "the basic concern" was that the
review process for U.N. exhibitions, which takes into account "all
positions," was not followed. He said there were other concerns
which he refused to disclose.
"The exhibition has been postponed until the regular review process
is completed," Haq said.
Smith told The Associated Press the exhibition refers to the
Armenian murders to help explain the word "genocide," which was
coined by Raphael Lemkin, a lawyer of Polish-Jewish descent. Lemkin
was inspired by what happened to the Armenians and other mass
killings, and campaigned in the League of Nations - the precursor
of the United Nations - against what he called "barbarity" and
"vandalism."
Historians estimate up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely
viewed by genocide scholars as the first genocide of the 20th
century. Turkey, however, denies the deaths constituted genocide,
saying that the toll has been inflated and that those killed were
victims of civil war and unrest.
Smith said a small panel on Lemkin in the exhibit "says that during
World War I a million Armenians were murdered in Turkey." It goes
on to explain that Lemkin first used the word genocide in 1943, and
then focuses on the Rwanda genocide, lessons from it, and the
responsibility of the international community to prevent future
genocides, he said.
Haq said "the U.N. hasn't expressed any position on incidents that
took place long before the United Nations was established" after
World War II.
"In any case, the focus during the anniversary of the Rwanda
genocide should remain on Rwanda itself," he said.
Rwanda's genocide began hours after a plane carrying President
Juvenal Habyarimana was mysteriously shot down as it approached the
capital, Kigali, on April 6, 1994. The 100-day slaughter, in which
more than 500,000 minority Tutsis were killed by Hutu extremists,
ended after rebels ousted the extremist Hutu government that
orchestrated the killings.
Smith said the panel on the origin of genocide could have been done
without referring to the Armenians.
But once the Armenian reference "was there and approved, we felt as
a matter of principle you can't just go around striking things out.
It is a form of denial, and as an organization that deals with
genocide issues, we couldn't do that on any genocide, and we can't
do this," he said.
"If we can't get this right, it undermines all the values of the
U.N. It undermines everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in
terms of preventing (genocide)," Smith said. "You can't learn the
lessons from history if you're going to sweep all of that history
under the carpet. And what about accountability? What about ending
impunity if you're going to hide part of the truth? It makes a
mockery of all of this."
Haq said Ban planned to meet with Rwanda's U.N. ambassador late
Monday, and he read a message from the secretary-general who
recalled the "personal impact" of his visit to Rwanda last year to
pay his respects to victims and survivors of the genocide.
"On this 13th anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda, two messages
should be paramount," Ban said. "First, never forget. Second never
stop working to prevent another genocide."
Associated Press Writer Lily Hindy contributed to this report
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email [email protected]
Internet www.anca.org
PRESS RELEASE
April 9, 2007
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
ANCA CRITICIZES TURKEY FOR BLOCKING
U.N. EXHIBIT ON THE RWANDA GENOCIDE
-- Turkey's Campaign to Deny the Armenian Genocide Prevents
Opening of Educational Exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide
WASHINGTON, DC - The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA)
today sharply condemned the Turkish government for blocking the
opening of a United Nations exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide due to
an indirect mention of the Armenian Genocide in one of the
exhibit's display panels.
"Sadly, this is only the most recent example of how Turkey's
campaign to deny the Armenian Genocide perpetuates the cycle of
genocide - making the world a more dangerous place and future
genocides more likely," said ANCA Executive Director Aram
Hamparian.
The Associate Press reported earlier today that the United Nations,
bowing to Turkish protests, has delayed the opening of the exhibit,
organized by the Aegis Trust, in the international organization's
highly trafficked visitor's lobby. The Turkish mission had
specifically registered its objections to a reference in the
exhibit concerning the origin of the word "genocide," which
mentioned that Raphael Lemkin, the international lawyer and human
rights activist who coined this term, was influenced by the crimes
committed against the Armenians and other mass killings.
Commenting on the exhibit's postponement, James Smith, the chief
executive of the British-based Aegis Trust, said, "If we can't get
this right, it undermines all the values of the U.N. It undermines
everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in terms of preventing
(genocide). . . You can't learn the lessons from history if you're
going to sweep all of that history under the carpet. And what about
accountability? What about ending impunity if you're going to hide
part of the truth? It makes a mockery of all of this."
The full text of the Associate Press article is provided below.
#####
UN exhibition postponed after Turkey objects to reference to
Armenians
The Associated Press
Monday, April 9, 2007
UNITED NATIONS: A U.N. exhibition on the 1994 Rwanda genocide,
scheduled to be opened Monday by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, has
been postponed because of Turkish objections to a reference to the
murder of a million Armenians in Turkey during World War I.
James Smith, chief executive of the British-based Aegis Trust,
which works to prevent genocide and helped organize the photo
exhibition, said the U.N. Department of Public Information approved
the contents and it was put up on Thursday.
A Turkish diplomat complained about the reference to the Armenian
murders, he said, and Armenia's U.N. Ambassador Armen Martirosyan
went to see the new Undersecretary for Public Information Kiyotaka
Akasaka and they agreed to remove the words "in Turkey."
Martirosyan said Akasaka invited him to the exhibition's opening,
but late Sunday "I was informed that the opening would be
postponed, or delayed, or even canceled." He blamed Turkish
"censorship" and the country's refusal "to come to terms with their
own history."
On Monday, the exhibition in the visitor's lobby had been turned
around so it could not be seen by the public. Smith said he was
still hoping for a diplomatic solution to the dispute.
"We are very disappointed about it because for us, this was meant
to be about the Rwandan genocide, and the lessons from the Rwandan
genocide," and to engage the secretary-general on the pledge by
world leaders to protect civilians from genocide, war crimes and
ethnic cleansing, which Smith said was not happening in Sudan's
conflict-wracked Darfur region.
U.N. associate spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed Turkey complained
about the exhibition, but he said "the basic concern" was that the
review process for U.N. exhibitions, which takes into account "all
positions," was not followed. He said there were other concerns
which he refused to disclose.
"The exhibition has been postponed until the regular review process
is completed," Haq said.
Smith told The Associated Press the exhibition refers to the
Armenian murders to help explain the word "genocide," which was
coined by Raphael Lemkin, a lawyer of Polish-Jewish descent. Lemkin
was inspired by what happened to the Armenians and other mass
killings, and campaigned in the League of Nations - the precursor
of the United Nations - against what he called "barbarity" and
"vandalism."
Historians estimate up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely
viewed by genocide scholars as the first genocide of the 20th
century. Turkey, however, denies the deaths constituted genocide,
saying that the toll has been inflated and that those killed were
victims of civil war and unrest.
Smith said a small panel on Lemkin in the exhibit "says that during
World War I a million Armenians were murdered in Turkey." It goes
on to explain that Lemkin first used the word genocide in 1943, and
then focuses on the Rwanda genocide, lessons from it, and the
responsibility of the international community to prevent future
genocides, he said.
Haq said "the U.N. hasn't expressed any position on incidents that
took place long before the United Nations was established" after
World War II.
"In any case, the focus during the anniversary of the Rwanda
genocide should remain on Rwanda itself," he said.
Rwanda's genocide began hours after a plane carrying President
Juvenal Habyarimana was mysteriously shot down as it approached the
capital, Kigali, on April 6, 1994. The 100-day slaughter, in which
more than 500,000 minority Tutsis were killed by Hutu extremists,
ended after rebels ousted the extremist Hutu government that
orchestrated the killings.
Smith said the panel on the origin of genocide could have been done
without referring to the Armenians.
But once the Armenian reference "was there and approved, we felt as
a matter of principle you can't just go around striking things out.
It is a form of denial, and as an organization that deals with
genocide issues, we couldn't do that on any genocide, and we can't
do this," he said.
"If we can't get this right, it undermines all the values of the
U.N. It undermines everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in
terms of preventing (genocide)," Smith said. "You can't learn the
lessons from history if you're going to sweep all of that history
under the carpet. And what about accountability? What about ending
impunity if you're going to hide part of the truth? It makes a
mockery of all of this."
Haq said Ban planned to meet with Rwanda's U.N. ambassador late
Monday, and he read a message from the secretary-general who
recalled the "personal impact" of his visit to Rwanda last year to
pay his respects to victims and survivors of the genocide.
"On this 13th anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda, two messages
should be paramount," Ban said. "First, never forget. Second never
stop working to prevent another genocide."
Associated Press Writer Lily Hindy contributed to this report