Tweet
Project Syndicate
May 4 2014
Remembering the Armenians
by Aryeh Neier, President Emeritus of the Open Society Foundations and
a founder of Human Rights Watch
Read more at http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/aryeh-neier-aryeh-neier-sees-hope-in-turkish-prime-minister-recep-tayyip-erdo-an-s-recent-statement-on-the-1915-massacres/english#PIlArF11mPUve8QE.99
NEW YORK ` On the 99th anniversary of the start of the massacre and
deportation of a significant share of the Armenian population in the
dying days of the Ottoman Empire, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
ErdoÄ?an issued a very positive statement. The decision to acknowledge
what Armenians call Genocide Remembrance Day may well represent a
breakthrough, given modern Turkey's persistent refusal to call what
happened `genocide.' But it is only a start.
ErdoÄ?an's statement recognized the significance of the date and
offered condolences to the victims' descendants. `It is a duty of
humanity,' he said, `to acknowledge that Armenians remember the
suffering experienced in that period¦.' Moreover, ErdoÄ?an accepted
that those who speak out more pointedly about what took place may do
so: `In Turkey, expressing differing opinions and thoughts freely on
the events of 1915 is the requirement of a pluralistic perspective, as
well as of a culture of democracy and modernity.'
Perhaps most important, ErdoÄ?an's statement suggests that there is
room for Turkey to go further in the run-up to the centenary of the
crimes that began on April 24, 1915, which many people ` not only
Armenians ` regard as a genocide. One additional step, for example,
would be to describe the events that caused the Armenians' suffering
and to acknowledge who caused it.
Turkey is far from alone in having to face up to terrible crimes
committed by previous generations. In general, those states whose
leaders have forthrightly apologized for past crimes have benefited
from doing so.
The contrast between Germany and Japan with respect to the crimes
committed during World War II is especially noteworthy. German leaders
have repeatedly apologized for the Nazis' crimes. Any visitor to
Berlin nowadays is struck by the number, prominence, and powerful
character of memorials to victims of the Holocaust. This official
commitment to public commemoration has played an important part `
perhaps especially in countries whose people suffered the most at the
hands of the Nazis ` in generating wide acceptance of Germany's
complete transformation.
By contrast, Japan has equivocated about crimes such as the Rape of
Nanking and the sexual enslavement of Korean `comfort women.' Though
Japan today bears no resemblance to the militarist regime of World War
II, its willful historical amnesia continues to fuel resentment
elsewhere in Asia, particularly China and Korea.
Consider recent apologies for past misdeeds by the United Kingdom and
the United States. In the British case, Prime Minister David Cameron
spoke out in June 2010 after a lengthy government report found that in
1972, in an episode known as `Bloody Sunday,' British soldiers had
fired without warning into a crowd of protesters in Derry, Northern
Ireland, killing 14 people.
A number of those killed were shot in the back. `Some members of our
Armed Forces acted wrongly,' Cameron said. `The Government is
ultimately responsible for the conduct of the Armed Forces. And for
that, on behalf of the Government `indeed, on behalf of our country `
I am deeply sorry.'
In the US, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation in 1988
apologizing for the internment of more than 110,000 Japanese-Americans
during WWII, an overwhelming majority of whom were US citizens. There
had never been any evidence showing that Americans of Japanese
provenance in the US furnished assistance to the wartime enemy. The
apology was followed by payment of more than $1 billion to survivors
of the camps, accompanied by letters signed by Reagan's successor,
George H.W. Bush.
In the past, the Turkish government has reacted furiously against
Turks who have spoken out about the massacres of Armenians in 1915. It
has even brought criminal charges, ultimately dropped, against the
prominent Turkish writers Elif Å?afak and the Nobel laureate Orhan
Pamuk for describing what happened as genocide. This makes ErdoÄ?an's
recognition that Turks may express different opinions about the
episode especially welcome.
This has been an eventful period in Turkey, marked by developments
that point in different directions. For those who wish the country
well, ErdoÄ?an's statement ` though it falls short of a genuine apology
` is an encouraging sign that Turkey's government and society are
moving in the right direction, toward a fuller understanding and
acknowledgment of one of the most troubling chapters in the country's
history.
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/aryeh-neier-aryeh-neier-sees-hope-in-turkish-prime-minister-recep-tayyip-erdo-an-s-recent-statement-on-the-1915-massacres
May 4 2014
Remembering the Armenians
by Aryeh Neier, President Emeritus of the Open Society Foundations and
a founder of Human Rights Watch
Read more at http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/aryeh-neier-aryeh-neier-sees-hope-in-turkish-prime-minister-recep-tayyip-erdo-an-s-recent-statement-on-the-1915-massacres/english#PIlArF11mPUve8QE.99
NEW YORK ` On the 99th anniversary of the start of the massacre and
deportation of a significant share of the Armenian population in the
dying days of the Ottoman Empire, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
ErdoÄ?an issued a very positive statement. The decision to acknowledge
what Armenians call Genocide Remembrance Day may well represent a
breakthrough, given modern Turkey's persistent refusal to call what
happened `genocide.' But it is only a start.
ErdoÄ?an's statement recognized the significance of the date and
offered condolences to the victims' descendants. `It is a duty of
humanity,' he said, `to acknowledge that Armenians remember the
suffering experienced in that period¦.' Moreover, ErdoÄ?an accepted
that those who speak out more pointedly about what took place may do
so: `In Turkey, expressing differing opinions and thoughts freely on
the events of 1915 is the requirement of a pluralistic perspective, as
well as of a culture of democracy and modernity.'
Perhaps most important, ErdoÄ?an's statement suggests that there is
room for Turkey to go further in the run-up to the centenary of the
crimes that began on April 24, 1915, which many people ` not only
Armenians ` regard as a genocide. One additional step, for example,
would be to describe the events that caused the Armenians' suffering
and to acknowledge who caused it.
Turkey is far from alone in having to face up to terrible crimes
committed by previous generations. In general, those states whose
leaders have forthrightly apologized for past crimes have benefited
from doing so.
The contrast between Germany and Japan with respect to the crimes
committed during World War II is especially noteworthy. German leaders
have repeatedly apologized for the Nazis' crimes. Any visitor to
Berlin nowadays is struck by the number, prominence, and powerful
character of memorials to victims of the Holocaust. This official
commitment to public commemoration has played an important part `
perhaps especially in countries whose people suffered the most at the
hands of the Nazis ` in generating wide acceptance of Germany's
complete transformation.
By contrast, Japan has equivocated about crimes such as the Rape of
Nanking and the sexual enslavement of Korean `comfort women.' Though
Japan today bears no resemblance to the militarist regime of World War
II, its willful historical amnesia continues to fuel resentment
elsewhere in Asia, particularly China and Korea.
Consider recent apologies for past misdeeds by the United Kingdom and
the United States. In the British case, Prime Minister David Cameron
spoke out in June 2010 after a lengthy government report found that in
1972, in an episode known as `Bloody Sunday,' British soldiers had
fired without warning into a crowd of protesters in Derry, Northern
Ireland, killing 14 people.
A number of those killed were shot in the back. `Some members of our
Armed Forces acted wrongly,' Cameron said. `The Government is
ultimately responsible for the conduct of the Armed Forces. And for
that, on behalf of the Government `indeed, on behalf of our country `
I am deeply sorry.'
In the US, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation in 1988
apologizing for the internment of more than 110,000 Japanese-Americans
during WWII, an overwhelming majority of whom were US citizens. There
had never been any evidence showing that Americans of Japanese
provenance in the US furnished assistance to the wartime enemy. The
apology was followed by payment of more than $1 billion to survivors
of the camps, accompanied by letters signed by Reagan's successor,
George H.W. Bush.
In the past, the Turkish government has reacted furiously against
Turks who have spoken out about the massacres of Armenians in 1915. It
has even brought criminal charges, ultimately dropped, against the
prominent Turkish writers Elif Å?afak and the Nobel laureate Orhan
Pamuk for describing what happened as genocide. This makes ErdoÄ?an's
recognition that Turks may express different opinions about the
episode especially welcome.
This has been an eventful period in Turkey, marked by developments
that point in different directions. For those who wish the country
well, ErdoÄ?an's statement ` though it falls short of a genuine apology
` is an encouraging sign that Turkey's government and society are
moving in the right direction, toward a fuller understanding and
acknowledgment of one of the most troubling chapters in the country's
history.
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/aryeh-neier-aryeh-neier-sees-hope-in-turkish-prime-minister-recep-tayyip-erdo-an-s-recent-statement-on-the-1915-massacres