Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

Can we imagine Amb. Yovanovitch or anyone at her level saying:

"The United States recognizes these events as one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century -- the 'Medz Yeghern' or 'Great Crime', as Armenians call it"?

Of course not. It wouldn't even make sense in the context. The only reason she introduced the term "Medz Yeghern" was to have the opportunity of defining it as 'calamity' in order to justify what she said next, namely that most administrations don't refer to it as 'genocide'.

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

1. Amb. Yovanovitch emphasized that "the U.S. government recognizes and deplores the mass killings, ethnic cleansing, and forced deportations that devastated over one and a half million Armenians at the end of the Ottoman Empire. The United States recognizes these events as one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century -- the 'Medz Yeghern' or Great Calamity, as many Armenians refer to it. The Administration understands that many Americans and many Armenians believe that the events of the past -- that I have referred to -- should be called 'genocide.' It has been President Bush's policy, as well as that of previous presidents of both parties, not to use that term."


Why 'at the end of the Ottoman Empire'? Is that an excuse?

Why name a whole series of massive crimes, but not even hint that anyone was responsible for them? "Mass killings" soon morphs into the general 'devastation' of the Armenians that "just happened to happen" at the end of the (blah blah blah), by which time the idea that anyone was responsible for it is out the window and forgotten.

We are stuck with deploring [bemoaning], tragedy, calamity, these events, those events, etc. ad nauseam--and then presented with an abrupt genocide denial at the end.

Despite its being a fantasy, the following are the first two sentences as they should have been, just to take stock of the dishonesty that is being practiced.

The U. S. recognizes and deplores the policy of mass killings, ethnic cleansing, and forced deportations of over one and a half million Armenians carried out by the Ottoman government during the First World War.The United States recognizes this policy as one of the greatest crimes of the 20th century--the 'Medz Yeghern" or "Great Crime" as Armenians call it.

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

A further look at the Yovanovitch statement:

The statement, with its tortured and highly premeditated verbal evasions, shows every sign of having been crafted by the Turkish Desk of the State Department after hours and hours of work.

A. Consider the following quote: The 'Medz Yeghern' or Great Calamity, as MANY Armenians REFER TO IT.

1. "Many" could be some or most. This is an outright falsification because it is a term that is UNIVERSALLY used by Armenians.

2. After having falsified the number of Armenians using the term and reducing it to a possible minority, we are told that they use it to REFER TO the events in question. They do not use it to 'refer to' the 'events'. This is their NAME for the 'events'.

3. "Many Americans and many Armenians believe that the events I have referred to should be called 'genocide'.

1. "Many" is again used here to mask the actual acceptance by most of the world that Armenians suffered a genocide.

2. Out of all the groupings she could cite on the issue, she selects the obscure 'many Americans' and 'many Armenians" .
What about the International Association of Genocide Scholars? What about the numerous American States and foreign
governments that have officially recognized the Genocide? What about the records of the U. S. government itself?
What about Raphael Lemkin's direct references to the Armenian Genocide? Etc., etc., etc. This is a shabby performance.

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

Correction to the above:

3. was supposed to be B.

Additionally, in talking about what Armenians BELIEVE about what to call the 'events', the point is made that they are motivated by feelings rather than knowledge and that most of what they say about 'the events' can be understood to reflect this irrational state of mind, rather than as addressing an objective and verifiable fact of history.

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

To sum up on the Yovanovitch statement:

Her statement makes it clear that "Meds Yeghern" was put forward for presidential use well before Obama was elected and is therefore the product of a bipartisan decision in the State Department.

It is clear that the purpose of using "Meds Yeghern" was to obscure the true nature of the Armenian Genocide, give Armenians the impression that it was being used to designate their genocide but actually was intended to be understood as referring to nothing but an unfortunate, tragic, deplorable calamity.

That is where things stand at this point.

What is called for is to continue the campaign to insist that the President of the United States, in English and in so many words, refer to the Armenian Genocide on April 24th as such, while at the same time not allowing "Meds Yeghern" to be translated in any way short of "Great Crime", because it is one of the Armenian names for the Genocide. Otherwise, the only name accorded to the Armenian Genocide from now on from the Executive Branch will be "Meds Yeghern/Great Calamity". This is a mistranslation and a denial of the Genocide.

[Eddo211]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

To sum up on the Yovanovitch statement:

Her statement makes it clear that "Meds Yeghern" was put forward for presidential use well before Obama was elected and is therefore the product of a bipartisan decision in the State Department.

It is clear that the purpose of using "Meds Yeghern" was to obscure the true nature of the Armenian Genocide, give Armenians the impression that it was being used to designate their genocide but actually was intended to be understood as referring to nothing but an unfortunate, tragic, deplorable calamity.

That is where things stand at this point.

What is called for is to continue the campaign to insist that the President of the United States, in English and in so many words, refer to the Armenian Genocide on April 24th as such, while at the same time not allowing "Meds Yeghern" to be translated in any way short of "Great Crime", because it is one of the Armenian names for the Genocide. Otherwise, the only name accorded to the Armenian Genocide from now on from the Executive Branch will be "Meds Yeghern/Great Calamity". This is a mistranslation and a denial of the Genocide.

When the time comes to use it against Turkey they will scream the G word loud and clear for the world to hear it.....that time might be approaching soon the way Turkey is headed (that is if its really not a setup between Israel and Turkey this preceived shift in Turkish foreign policy).

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

When the time comes to use it against Turkey they will scream the G word loud and clear for the world to hear it.....that time might be approaching soon the way Turkey is headed (that is if its really not a setup between Israel and Turkey this preceived shift in Turkish foreign policy).

I'd like to believe that, but it's likely that a regime change in Ankara is in the cards right now sponsored by Turkey's two greatest allies, this in order to reinstall the good old Kemalist order that they had no problem with. For that reason, I don't think the G-word will even be whispered from the White House soon. The campaign for the truth simply has to go on no matter what and we have to make sure our language is not used against us.

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

Գնում եմ Մեծ Եղերնի քաղաքը, այն նզովւած հնոցը, ուր գարբնւեցին բոլոր դժոխային դաւերը, բոլոր ոճիրները հայ աշխարհի ու ժողովրդի դեմ: Գնում եմ բաց ճակատով թշնամու դուռը բաղխելու, աշխարհի մեծագոյն չարագործներին, նայել նրանց աչքերի մեջ, բոլոր անասելի ցաւս ու ցասումս ճչալ ու հետոյ. . . .

Ա. Ահարոնեան

I am on my way to the capital of The Great Crime, that accursed forge where all the hellish plots, all the crimes against the Armenian people and their world were hammered out. I am setting out to boldly knock on the door of the world's greatest evil doers, to look them straight in the eye, to scream all my unspeakable pain and rage and then. . . .

A. Aharonian

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

Historical note on previous post:

In June 1918, the representatives of the three Transcaucasian governments were invited to Constantinople to ratify the Treaty of Batum, which had been drawn up by Talaat's government in April in order to normalize relations between the Porte and these states. It must have been a moment of supreme irony as Talaat Pasha welcomed the Armenian plenipotentiary Avedis Aharonian into his office. Aharonian made the journey to protest the onerous terms of Batum.

[Diranakir]

Re: Medz Yeghern: Great Crime vs. Great Calamity

Yet another denialist drone emerges from the State Department bureaucracy to save the day and get Turkey back where they want it.
Turkey as a protector of religious freedom? Turkey's historic legacy of religious tolerance? Brazen fantasy is OK if you're a high American diplomat?

And then people wonder how Erdogan gets away with saying Muslims don't do genocide!


And as to the great merits of opening Halki Seminary? How about abolishing article 301? Now THAT would be really impressive.



July 20, 2010

Francis Joseph Ricciardone, nominated by US President Barack Obama to become the next ambassador to Turkey, has vowed to work towards restoring Turkish-Israeli relations.

Ricciardone also signaled that he would press Ankara to extend religious freedoms for Turkey’s non-Muslim community. “We are particularly interested to see Turkey shine, as a protector of religious freedom. There could be no more powerful modern testimony to Turkey’s historic legacy of religious tolerance than reopening the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Halki Seminary,” he said.