The Armenian Genocide is Corraborated by the International Scholary, Legal and Human Rights Community E-Book
Nikolay Hovhannisyan
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- Herausgeber: Edit Print
- Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2019
For about 50 years the author has been studying different aspects of the Armenian Genocide, as well as fundamental problems of genocides in general, in different countries of Asia, America, Africa and Europe in XX-XXI centuries. After the investigation and detailed analysis of many primary sources, official documents and other materials, he has revised the obsolete opinions and suggested a new conceptual-strategic approach to the evaluation of the Armenian Genocide, committed in 1915 in the Ottoman Empire by the ruling Young Turk Party. On the base of it, he came to the conclusion that: a/The Armenian Genocide is already an internationally recognized genocide, corroborated and recognized by the international scholarly, legal and human rights community; b/The Ottoman Empire was not merely the first state that committed the first genocide of XX century-the Armenian Genocide, but also the first state that recognized the crime in 1919 by the Ottoman court-martial Verdict; c/Turkey is the founder of the genocide-denial industry; d/Now a new phase has begun: transition from the recognition of the Armenian Genocide to the liquidation of the heavy cosenquences of the Armenian Genocide, committed in 1915 in the Ottoman Empire.
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I. TRANSITION OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE STUDIES FROM A SENTIMENTAL- EMOTIONAL INTO AN ACADEMIC FIELD. NEW CONCEPTUAL-STRATEGIC APPROACHES
In the evaluation and recognition of genocides, including the Armenian Genocide-Armenocide, a turning point was the formation of genocidology in the second half of XX century as a new scientific branch within the social sciences. The foundation of International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) in 1994 was also of great significance. It is the most authoritative organization in the world and major body of genocide scholars. Due to these two significant events the study of genocide was transfered from a sentimental -emotional field into a scientific field. The IAGS’s first president was elected Professor Helen Fein, one of the most outstanding specialists on genocide, human rights, collective violence, author of several monographs and Director of the Institute for the Study of Genocide, City University of New York. In 1997 and 2005, IAGS as a main body of genocide scholars, unanimously recognized the Armenian Genocide.
On June 4-7, 2005, the 6th Biennial Conference of International Association of Genocide Scholars was convened in Florida, Atlantic University, USA, on “Ninety Years after the Armenian Genocide and Sixty Years after the Holocaust: The Continuing Threat and Legacy of Genocide”.1 It was indeed a historical eventwhereall the outdstanding specialists and scholars of the world on genocide issues participated. The 6th Biennial not only once again recognized the Armenian Genocide carried out by the Young Turkleaders in the Ottoman Empire in 1915-1923, but also recognizedit as the first Genocide of XX century.2
IAGS has adopted a series of documents on genocide issues: resolutions, declarations and letters addressed to the leaders of different countries. Among them, a peculiar place occupies the IAGS’s letter to the Prime Minister of Turkey - Erdogan, dated on June 7, 2005, and signed by the President of IAGS, Professor Israel Charny (Israel), the first Vice-President Gregory H. Stanton (USA), the second Vice-President Linda Melvern (UK), Secretary Steven Jacobs (USA). Here are the main points of that unique and important document:
“Dear Prime Minister Erdogan: We are writing you this open letter in response to your call for “impartial study by historians” concerning the fate of the Armenian people in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. We represent the major body of scholars who study genocide in North America and Europe. We are concerned that calling for an impartial study of the Armenian Genocide you may not be fully aware of the extent of the scholarly and intellectual record on the Armenian Genocide and how this event conforms to the definition of the United Nations Genocide Convention. We want to underscore that it is not just theArmenians who affirm the Armenian Genocide but it is also the overhelming opinion of scholars who study genocide, hundreds of scholars, who have no affiliation with any government, and whose work spans many countries and nationalities and a lot of decades”.3 The leaders of IAGS, the authors of the letter have mentioned that scholarly evidence reveals that on April 24, 1915, under the cover of World War I, the Young Turk government of the Ottoman Empire began systematic genocide of its Armenian citizens- the unarmed Christian minority population. More than one million Armenians were exterminated by killing, starvation, torture, the rest of the Armenian population fled into permanent exile, and thus an ancient civilization wasexpunged from its homeland of 2500 years.4 They have underlined that “The Armenian Genocide is amply documented by thousands of official records of the United States and nations around the world including Turkey’s wartime allies Germany, Austria and Hungary, by the Ottoman court-martial records, eyewitness accounts of missionaries and diplomats, the testimonies of survivors, and by decades of historical scholarship”.5
The letter hasreminded the Turkish Prime Minister that when Raphael Lemkin coined the term genocide in 1944 he cited the extermination of the Armenians by Turks and the extermination of the Jews by Nazis whengiving examples of what he meant by genocide. So, we have to confirm that the Armenian materials and realities on genocide together with those of the Jewish materials played a decisive and fundamental role in the formulation of the term “genocide” and essence of the genocidology.
It is obvious that a leading role belongs to scholars in affirming or denying the genocide. Their opinion, position and arguments are of great importance. Discussing the position of contemporary Turkish government towards the Armenian Genocide from this point of view, the IAGS leaders have criticized the attitude of Turkish scholars and intellectualsin their open letter to Erdogan, stating: “We would also like to note that scholars who advise your government and who are affiliated in other ways with your institutions are not impartial. Such the so-called “scholars” serve the agenda of historical and moral obfuscation advising you and the Turkish Parliament to deny the Armenian Genocide”.6 In conclusion the ISAG’s leaders have explained to Erdogan that “We believe that it is in the interests of the Turkish people and their future to acknowledge the responsibility of previous government for the genocide of the Armenian people, just as the German government and people have done in the case of the Holocaust”.7The leaders of IAGS have presented their main and fundamental conclusion on behalf of IAGS: “The Armenian Genocide is corroborated by the International scholarly, legal and human rights community”.8 And we have to accept that it is a new conceptual approach of historical significance to the evaluation of the Armenian Genocide, based on objective and reliable studies. The unshakeable, mighty arguments of IAGS and the historical facts make any attempt to deny the Armenian Genocide, implemented by the Young Turks’ government in the Ottoman Empire in 1915, baseless.
In this case, it is necessary and very important to mention the Common Public Declaration of the governments of the United Kingom of Great Britain, France and Russia, made on 23 May, 1915, and published simultaneously the same day in their capitals-London, Paris and St. Peterbourg. They stated, “In the last months Kurds and Turkish population of Armenia were engaged in massacring the Armenians with connivance and often with the help of ottoman authorities. Such massacres took place in about the middle of April, at Erzerum, Derchan, Egin, Bitlis, Sassoun, Mush, Zeitun, and all over Cilicia”.9 It was mentioned in the Declaration that the inhabitants of about 100 villages near Van were all assassinated. The Armenian quarters of Van town were and are still besieged by Kurds. And the misbehavior of the ottoman goverment towards innocent Armenian population at Constantinople is blameworthy.10 The governments of Great Britain, France and Russia declared, “In face of these fresh crimes committed by Turkey, the allied goverments announce publicly to the Sublime Porte that they hold all the members of the Ottoman government as well as all the accessory agents personally responsible for thr Armenian massacres”.11
This Declaration about the personal responsiblity of all the members of the Ottoman government for the Armenian massacres-i.e. genocide, was a new phenomenon in the world diplomatic practice, firstly used in connection with the Armenian Tragedy of 1915. It was the first time the given government was declared responsible collectively for a crime commited in its country. In case of the Armenian Massacres/Genocide in the Ottoman Empire, the Young Turk government was declared guilty by Great Britain, France and Russia. It was a very serious accusation. And it is worthy of note that the new conceptual approach was demonstrated by France, Great Britain and Russia not after the World War I, but during the war time, which raises the political significance of the mentioned Declaration.
This Declaration, as an official Document, later played its positive role in the processes of International recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
II. THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE COMMITTING THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE WAS THE FIRST STATE THAT RECOGNIZED THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
A new conceptual approach is to be used to the question of recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the Turkish state, too. Which was the first state that officially recognized the Armenian Genocide? It is usually said Uruguay to be the first state, which recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1965. But this point of view needs a revision.
The Armenian Genocide was carried out in the Ottoman Empire, in the Ottoman state in 1915, and the Ottoman state was the first state of the world that recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1919. And it was done not by a declaration, but legally, according to the juridical norms and legitimate actions, by the Verdict of the Ottoman court-martial, established by the fetwa (decree) of the Ottoman legitimate sultan Wahieddin VI on 8 March 1919.
