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One Week after Sweden Rejected Recognition of the 1915 Genocide

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  • One Week after Sweden Rejected Recognition of the 1915 Genocide

    June 21, 2008
    Stockholm, Sweden

    Armenica
    Box 1716
    SE-751 47 Uppsala
    Sweden
    Contact: Vahagn Avedian
    +46 707 73 33 83
    [email protected]
    www.armenica.org


    One Week after Sweden Rejected Recognition of the 1915 Genocide


    A week has passed by since the world heard the argumentation of the
    Swedish Parliament and its decision to reject recognition of the 1915
    genocide. A short review of its meaning and effects is warranted.

    The astonishment and the regret among scholars involved was great.
    Already at the signing of the petition addressed to the Swedish
    Parliament, numerous scholars expressed their regret about the need of
    such a letter in 2008 and that in Sweden.

    This is not only about Turkey and the involved minorities, but it is
    also about the reputation of Sweden and its political leaders. That a
    party which is regarded as the founder of Forum for Living History and
    another which already has recognized the 1915 genocide at its general
    congress voted against a recognition did not make the issue any better. As
    one of the scholars wrote, it was highly strange that the Social
    Democrats, who were the promoters of Forum for Living History
    (governmental agency which educates the Swedish society and teachers about
    the 1915 genocide), themselves refuse to recognize the genocide. At their
    Party Congress in August 2005, Folkpartiet (The Liberals) recognized the
    1915 genocide and recommended that `The EU should exert strong pressure on
    Turkey to recognize the genocide committed against Armenians, Assyrians,
    Syriacs, Chaldeans, and Pontic Greeks during WWI.' One should practice
    what one preaches...

    In the newspaper Dagen (June 13, 2008), MP Alf Svensson (Christian
    Democrat) pointed out that the parliament, after all, had recognized the
    genocide indirectly when it was stated that `The Committee understands
    that what engulfed the Armenians, Assyrian/Syriacs and Chaldeans during
    the reign of the Ottoman Empire would, according to the 1948 Convention,
    probably be regarded as genocide, if it had been in power at the time.' It
    might look that way, but let see what a refusal to recognize the 1915
    genocide for its true nature has meant in Turkey. Precisely as the
    scholars stated in the petition (signed by over 60 world leading genocide
    experts), the refusal to recognize a genocide is nothing but supporting
    and abetting its denial.

    The Swedish Parliament's decision was quickly intercepted by Turkish
    media and the news was published in several newspapers. Hürryet (June 14,
    2008) cited Egeman Bagis, member of the AKP party (i.e. the same
    `democratic' powers which the Swedish Foreign Committee wishes to
    promote) and advisor to the prime minister, expressing his gratitude for
    the Swedish Parliament's rejection of `the Armenian allegations' in
    regard to `the so-called genocide'. The text continues: `Some 300,000
    Armenians and at least an equal number of Turks were killed in civil
    strife when Armenians, backed by Russia, rose up against the Ottomans in
    1915.' Thus, now supported by the Swedish Parliament, it is the Armenians
    who have killed more Turks and Kurds and not the way around, while the
    `indirectly recognized' genocide is merely `Armenian allegations.'
    Hürriyet, one of the three largest newspapers in Turkey and maybe the
    most influential one, is actually regarded as of `liberal' nature. It is
    often accused for attempts for destabilizing the country and has 'Türkiye
    Türklerindir' (Turkey belongs to Turks) beside Atatürk's image in its
    logotype. The newspapers `Zaman', `Turkish Weekly' and others had similar
    reporting. If now these are the liberal powers in Turkey, one might
    imagine what the `extremist' organizations have done with the Swedish
    genocide denial.

    Thus, the parliament, exactly as stated in the petition, and quite
    contrary to what Foreign Minister Carl Bildt and the Foreign Department
    have tried to pretend to be the case, has now directly contributed to
    nourishing history revisionism and those currents which make the life of
    the minorities unbearable in Turkey.

    It should be mentioned that on June 17, 2008, the publicist Ragip Zarakolu
    was sentenced to five months prison for having `insulted the Turkish
    Nation' in accordance to the infamous paragraph 301. His crime: having
    published a translation of the British author George Jerjian's book `The
    Truth will set us Free: Armenians and Turks Reconciled', about the
    Armenian Massacres of 1915. Thereby one can verify that the alteration in
    the law which took place in April, 2008, opposite to the assertion of the
    Swedish Foreign Committee mentioning the `reform package', `freedom
    package' or the `democracy package', is nothing but a cosmetic change and
    a masquerade. Furthermore, it was displayed that the recommendation of the
    Foreign Committee for a rejection of recognition `...in the time being, it
    would be venturesome to disturb an initiate and delicate national process'
    is quite baseless. The Swedish refusal to more forcefully and more clearly
    support the democracy in Turkey can only abet similar actions and
    decisions in a Turkey which obviously is incapable of reforming itself
    from within. This can, in no ways, promote the demanded development in
    Turkey, or benefit Sweden's reputation, or the interests of EU.

    The voting protocol was a very interesting reading. Those 37 MPs ho voted
    for recognition of the 1915 genocide deserve all praise and honor,
    especially those who defied their party lines and the presented
    disinformation and instead followed their own principles and the facts at
    hand. After questioning some MPs who had voted `yes' for rejecting a
    recognition, it became clear that the knowledge in the issue is almost
    non-existing. The MPs had, more or less, blindly followed the
    `recommendation' of the Foreign Department. Thus, some of the blame for
    the wrongful decision and the disinformation among the MPs must be placed
    upon our organizations that should, in good time, have had supplied the
    MPs with correct data, resolutions, reports etc. Therefore, in connection
    with the elections to the EU Parliament in 2009 and the Swedish elections
    in 2010, we will make sure that the MPs, unlike those parliamentary
    members who during the debate could not answer one single question in
    defense of the rejection decision, at least do not lack knowledge in the
    issue and will be able to form their own opinion rather than voting in
    accordance to a directive which demonstrably was based on pitfalls and
    errors.

    Vahagn Avedian
    Chairman of the Board, Union of Armenian Associations in Sweden
    Chief Editor of Armenica.org
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