Turkish Journalist in Jail

Dear Friends,

Human rights activist, publisher, writer and journalist Ragip Zarakolu was arrested on October 28, 2011 in connection with the ongoing Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) trials. He is the chair of Committee for Freedom of Publication. His son was also jailed a few weeks previously on similar charges. Zarakolu has been a leader in revealing the truth about the 1915 Armenian events to Turkish readers, with 10 books about this taboo subject in Turkey and countless articles. He was the first to publish the Turkish translation of books by Vahakn Dadrian, Dora Sakayan, Verjine Svazlian, George Jerjian, Taner Akcam and Teotig.

A campaign is started to support Zarakolu and his Belge publishing house.

You can show your support by ordering books from Belge publications, as well as sending a Christmas card to Zarakolu in prison. He needs all the moral and financial support that we can provide, and I request that you publicize this campaign through your friends and contacts.

You can buy Belge books online:

http://www.kitapyurdu.eu/arama/default.asp?anahtar=ermeni+belge&stype=4&type=list&populer=0&aramasekli=1&exactly=ON&satis=2&x2=0

Most books are in Turkish but the Teotig book, a compilation of the biographies of more than 700 Armenian intellectuals martyred starting on April 24, 1915, is in both Armenian and Turkish. http://www.kitapyurdu.eu/kitap/472521/11nisananiti.htm??sa=47851052

Here is his address: RAGIP ZARAKOLU, KOCAELİ 2 NOLU F TİPİ TUTUKEVİ-KOCAELİ, TURKEY

On a personal note, I had dinner with him the day before we travelled to Diyarbakir for the opening of the newly reconstructed Surp Giragos Church. He had told me that since he is now too old and well known, the state is going after his son and not bothering him. Unfortunately, a few days after his return from Diyarbakir, where he had joined us in the blessing of the Surp Giragos Church, he too was arrested and jailed.

1) Who is Ragip Zarakolu: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rag%C4%B1p_Zarakolu

2) http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/PrintNews.aspx?PageID=383&NID=9031

3)http://web.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=arrested-publisher-zarakolu-says-he-is-in-kafkaesque-novel-2011-11-29

P.S. If you feel uncomfortable writing to a Turkish prison or ordering books from a Turkish publisher, I can arrange on your behalf.

Thank you all,

Raffi Bedrosyan

HOY, 19.30 HS., EN EL C.C. MEKHITARISTA :ACTO CULTURAL CIERRE DE LA TEMPORADA 2011.

Martes 13 de diciembre
19:30Hs.

ACTO CULTURAL CIERRE DE LA TEMPORADA 2011.

Participan:

-GAGIK GASPARYAN
Interperte de Música Tradicional Armenia en Duduk (Instrumento de viento armenio).




-VALERIA CHEREKIAN
Cantante interprete de Música Tradicional Armenia




-EMILIANO TCHAGHAYAN
Pianista

Interpretará:
ARAM KHACHATURIAN - TOCCATA
LBERTO GINASTERA - GAUCHO MATRERO




-ESTUDIO VOCAL
Música Tradicional Armenia.

En esta oportunidad se presentan:
Anoush Gostanian, Alín Demirdjian, Tatevik Isahakian, Talín Leylek


Entrada libre y gratuita.
Duración 55 minutos.


Centro Cultural del Colegio Mekhitarista de Buenos Aires
Director: Jorge Ulises Murekian
Virrey del Pino 3511
CABA
4552-3690 / 4554-3878
centrocultural@colegiomekhitarista.edu.ar

Pres. Sargsyan Makes Major Strategic Shift in Armenia's Demands from Turkey

By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier

Pres. Serzh Sargsyan delivered a major speech in Marseille, France, last week, during which he introduced a new strategy for the resolution of Armenia's demands from Turkey. Until now, the Armenian government had merely pursued the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

For the first time, the President spoke about Armenia's demand for “justice.” To ensure that his message was received loud and clear, he repeated the word "justice" three times in three separate sentences:
-- “Every Armenian demands justice, whether he or she lives in Armenia, Artsakh or the Diaspora.”
-- “We were strong enough to survive the Meds Yeghern [Great Calamity], and we are just as strong now to demand justice.” The President used the term “Armenian Genocide” six times in other parts of his speech.
-- “That was the joyful news for justice, not revenge,” Pres. Sargsyan stated, describing the joy of Marseille Armenians in 1921, when they heard the acquittal of Soghomon Tehlirian, Talat's assassin, by a German court.

Surprisingly, not a single political commentator in Armenia, Turkey or elsewhere took note of the significant shift in the approach articulated by Pres. Sargsyan. Seeking “justice” for the victims of genocide is a completely different objective than simply attaining recognition. In this context, the word “justice” encompasses the undoing of as much of the damage as possible, by demanding the restitution and return of all looted assets, confiscated properties, and occupied territories.

While advancing a more comprehensive set of demands from Turkey, Pres. Sargsyan expressed his conviction that the day would come when Turkey's leaders would acknowledge the mass crimes committed by their predecessors: “We are confident that Turkey will repent. That is neither a precondition nor a desire to exact revenge. Turkey must face its own history. Someday, Turkey's leadership would find the strength to reassess its approach to the Armenian Genocide. Our position has not changed -- it is clear cut. We are prepared to establish normal relations with Turkey, befitting neighboring countries. For example, neighboring countries Poland and Germany led by Chancellor Willy Brandt, acknowledging his country's terrible crimes, dropped to his knees at the Warsaw Ghetto. Sooner or later, Turkey, a self-described European country, will have a leadership worthy of being called European, which will bow its head at the Tsitsernagapert [Genocide] Memorial. The sooner the better, but, that's the prerogative of the Turkish people. We cannot impose anything on them. They should do that for the sake of the Turkish people, just as Willy Brandt did for the sake of the German people.”

Egemen Bagis, Turkey's Minister for European Union Affairs, perhaps not comprehending the far reaching consequences of Pres. Sargsyan's demand for “justice,” reacted angrily to other parts of the Armenian President’s remarks. Bagis arrogantly stated: “There is no power in the world that could bring the Turkish people to its knees. On the contrary, the Turkish people know full well how to bring to their knees those who make such ill-informed statements.”

I fully endorse Pres. Sargsyan's new approach to the pursuit of Armenian demands from Turkey. Through my columns, speeches, interviews, and private meetings, I have repeatedly urged Armenia’s leaders to demand “justice” from Turkey, rather than simply seeking genocide recognition. One of my articles on this topic, “Genocide Recognition and Quest for Justice,” was published last year in The International & Comparative Law Review of the Loyola Law School of Los Angeles.

Armenia is better off presenting its claims from Turkey in terms of seeking “justice,” to avoid the danger of making official territorial demands from a powerful and menacing neighbor. Nevertheless, the demand for “justice” is a code word or shorthand for a comprehensive set of claims from Turkey. Not even Turkey's denialist leaders would dare challenge the universally-accepted notion of “justice” based on the rule of law, specifically, international law.

While Pres. Sargsyan's remarks in Marseille are highly commendable, it remains to be seen how this newly articulated concept of seeking justice for the Armenian Genocide will be translated into action. What practical steps will the Armenian government, particularly the Foreign Ministry, take to demand justice from Turkey? Will Armenia back the lawsuits filed by Diaspora Armenian communities in American and European courts against Turkey, demanding restitution for Armenian losses during the Genocide or will Armenia bring its own lawsuit against the Republic of Turkey in the World Court?

Salio el segundo número del House Organ de la Fundación

US Court to Rule on Turkish Banks’ Motion to Dismiss Armenian Lawsuits

By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier

Two separate lawsuits were filed last year in US Federal Court in Los Angeles against the Republic of Turkey and two of its major banks demanding compensation for properties confiscated from Armenians after the 1915 Genocide.

The first is a class action lawsuit seeking what could amount to billions of dollars from the Turkish Republic, T.C. Ziraat Bankasi, and the Central Bank of Turkey for unjust enrichment from liquidation of properties belonging to Armenians deported and exterminated during the Genocide.

The second lawsuit, filed by three Armenian-Americans, seeks $64 million for their confiscated properties in Adana, Turkey, and millions more for accrued rent and interest paid by the U.S. government in the past 60 years for use of the strategic Incirlik Air Base, built on land taken from families of the Armenian plaintiffs.

When these lawsuits were initiated, the Turkish government and its two banks ridiculed the charges, claiming that US courts have no authority to judge the actions of other governments. In order to block the lawsuits, the Turkish entities refused to be served with the legal documents, which is the first step in filing a lawsuit. After lengthy cat and mouse games, Turkish officials finally received the court documents transmitted to them by the US Embassy in Ankara at the request of the State Department.

After grudgingly accepting the court papers, the Republic of Turkey refused to appear in US Federal Court, despite warnings from the State Department that it risked a default judgment. The Turkish banks, however, fearing a similar fate, rushed to the court and filed a motion to dismiss the pending lawsuits.

In their filings, the banks objected to the lawsuits, claiming that American courts lacked jurisdiction due to sovereign immunity. They argued that the lawsuits should not go forward because of the Ankara Agreement of 1934, the "political question doctrine," potential harm to U.S.-Turkish relations, lack of evidence that the plaintiffs are heirs of the owners of the confiscated properties, and the expiry of the statute of limitations.

Surprisingly, the Turkish banks conceded that even if the Republic of Turkey did confiscate Armenian properties, international law precluded the filing of such lawsuits, since Turkey had taken "the property of its own nationals."

The banks’ lawyers made the outrageous suggestion that the wills of Armenian Genocide victims be reviewed to determine the legal heirs of the confiscated properties. In case these victims did not have a will, the lawyers proposed that the relevant laws be examined to see who was really entitled to their properties!

The attorneys for the Armenian plaintiffs countered the Turkish objections and asked the court to deny the motion to dismiss. The plaintiffs asserted that the Ziraat bank branch in the United States is a private commercial bank and has no reason to enjoy sovereign immunity. Moreover, "genocide and the associated plunder of property is never deemed a legitimate act of the state. There is no application of a political question, as this case focuses on the return of unjust gains from the sale and/or rental of property held in trust. Finally, the statute of limitations does not apply because the properties were held in trust, and the failure to return them is a continuing injury." The attorneys further asserted that there are no statutes of limitations for War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity.

Contradicting the Banks’ claims, the lawyers for the class action lawsuit maintained that the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act does not preclude the prosecution of foreign entities engaged in commercial activity in the United States which both the Republic of Turkey and the two banks have done for many years. The lawyers also asserted that the defendants falsely claimed that international law does not apply to foreign countries "for wrongs perpetrated against their own nationals." On the contrary, "international law prohibits states from expropriating property of nationals conducted during genocide and human rights abuses."

A hearing is scheduled in Federal Court on December 19 to determine the validity of the Turkish banks’ motion to dismiss the two lawsuits. Should the court reject the Turkish motion, and the Armenian plaintiffs end up winning their lawsuits during a subsequent trial, the court may order that the US assets of both Turkish banks be seized, up to the value of the claims, and turned over to the heirs of dispossessed Armenian victims as fair compensation.

La Construcción de los Derechos Humanos y la Recuperación de la Memoria. Las experiencias de Argentina y Málaga

El Archivo Nacional de la Memoria (ANM) invita a las Jornadas de Memoria Histórica "La Construcción de los Derechos Humanos y la Recuperación de la Memoria. Las experiencias de Argentina y Málaga", que se llevarán a cabo el próximo 6 de diciembre desde las 10:00 en el Auditorio Silvio Frondizi del ANM con la participación de especialistas, funcionarios y periodistas de nuestro país y de España.

Argentina y España han tenido una larga experiencia de intercambio de flujos migratorios atravesada por el exilio y el asilo. Ambos se han venido articulando y construyendo como una realidad transnacional creada por esta historia compartida. Muchos españoles emigrantes, por el solo hecho de ser demócratas, fueron desaparecidos y asesinados durante la dictadura militar argentina. Muchos de ellos eran andaluces y malagueños.

Por su parte, la experiencia de Argentina por la recuperación de su Memoria Histórica y en la lucha por el castigo a los responsables de los crímenes contra la humanidad allí cometidos, se sitúa como referente en esta materia, en la que en España queda un largo camino por recorrer.

Programa:

10.00 hs. Recepción del Presidente del Archivo Nacional de la Memoria, Dr. Ramón Torres Molina, y autoridades. 10.15 hs. Presentación de la Jornada, a cargo de Adriana Arce -Cooperación Internacional SDH- y Marcelo Duhalde -Director de Prensa y Comunicación del ANM-.

10.45 hs. "Reeducación política en el franquismo: la experiencia de la cárcel de mujeres de Málaga" (los niños de la Guerra Civil Española). Antonio Somoza- periodista.

11.15 hs. Juicios por apropiación de Bebés. Dr. Pablo Barbuto, Coordinador del Área Jurídica Nacional de la Secretaría de Derechos Humanos de la Nación. Macarena Gelman, nieta recuperada.

13.00 hs. Intervalo - almuerzo

14.30 hs. Identificación y recuperación de restos.

1) Asociación por la Recuperación de la Memoria Histórica de Málaga. Apertura de fosas y exhumaciones en Andalucía -Andrés Fernández, Arqueólogo.
2) El trabajo del Equipo Argentino de Antropología Forense (EAAF). Luis Fondebrider.

15.30 hs. Medios de comunicación: su papel antes y ahora. Roberto Caballero - Director de Tiempo Argentino.

16.00 hs. Intervalo - café

16.30 hs. Represión Sindical-Gremial España-Argentina. Daniel Cieza, Asesor SDH, y Antonio Somoza - CGT Andalucía.

17 a 17.10 hs. Presentación de España en el corazón. Semana de Memoria compartida entre España y Argentina. A realizarse en febrero 2012 en Bs. As. Susana Hornos - Zaida Rico.

17.15 hs. Mesa de cierre - Antonio Somoza - CGT Andalucía, Adriana Arce y Marcelo Duhalde - Secretaría de Derechos Humanos.


Desde ya, agradecemos su colaboración en la difusión.
Saluda atte.

Marcelo Duhalde
Director
Prensa y Comunicación
Archivo Nacional de la Memoria
Av. Del Libertardor 8151-C.A.B.A
(011)4702-1155

Turkey is Ready to Invade Syria

By M K Bhadrakumar

December 01, 2011 -- Turkey and its western allies are transferring the Libyan fighters whom they trained and armed to depose Muammar Gaddafi to Syria. Around 600 Libyan ‘volunteers’ have entered Syria. Daily Telegraph reported that secret meetings were held on Friday in Istanbul between the Turkish officials and the Syrian opposition representatives and the Libyan fighters. Large-scale infiltration of weapons from Turkey and Jordan have been going on for months to create civil-war conditions in Syria, but this is the first move to introduce ‘volunteers’.
The move is necessitated by the failure to induce defections form the Syrian armed forces, except a mere handful. Turkey and the western powers are desperate to create the myth of a ‘Syrian resistance’ force without which their blatant aggression will be in full display.
Moscow reacted today indicating it might supply arms to the Syrian regime to defend itself. FM Lavrov just stopped short, calling any arms embargo on Syria as ‘unfair’. Moscow has confirmed that a Russian battle group is sailing toward the Syrian naval base of Tartus on the eastern Mediterranean, close to the Turkish border with Syria. Lavrov criticised the foreign interference in Syria, but without naming Turkey, Jordan, etc.
Things seem to be heading for a flash point, indeed. The sure sign is that US V-P Joseph Biden is heading for Ankara in the weekend. It is a major signal of the US giving the go-ahead to Turkey to act on Syria without fear. Again, Jordanian King, Abdullah, travelled to israel. He is Saudi Arabia’s ‘back channel’ to Israel and a key regional ally for the western intelligence.
Turkey is indeed shedding its fear of the unknown and is coming out into the open on the Syrian situation. Turkish FM Ahmet Davitoglu indicated today for the first time that Turkey is all set for invasion of Syria once it gets the green signal from its western allies. He said this before heading for the combined meeting of EU foreign ministers and Arab League representatives (read Saudi Arabia and Qatar).
The day Davutoglu spoke, November 29, will stand out as a notable date in the chronicle of the Turkish Republic that Kemal Ataturk founded. Ataturk’s ‘red line’ used to be that Turkey should never get entangled in the affairs of the Muslim Middle East but should instead concentrate on its own ‘modernization’. Evidently, the Islamist government in power today thinks Turkey is today ‘modern’ enough already and can now go back and reclaim its Ottoman legacy.
A Turkish army moving into an Arab country - it is a historic point. It is a century after the Turks were driven out by the ‘Arab revolt’. The matrix is dripping with irony. The Arab revolt against the Turks was instigated by Great Britain. And Britain, although a far weaker power today, is still playing a seminal role - except, it is encouraging the Turks to return to the Arab world. One hundred years ago, Britain successfully pitted the Arabs against the Turks. Today, Turks join hands with some Arabs who have a grouse against some other Arabs.
Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar was a career diplomat in the Indian Foreign Service. His assignments included the Soviet Union, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Turkey. www.blogs.rediff.com/mkbhadrakumar