Diplomatic Correctness
February 8th, 2006
Embassy,
LETTERS
Aydemir Erman Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Canada
It is unfortunate that Armenia's Ambassador to Canada, Ara Papian, found it diplomatically appropriate to use his farewell interview with Embassy to incriminate Turkey (Re: Diplomatic Circles, Embassy Feb. 1). I hesitate to speak after a departing colleague, yet the record has to be set straight for the sake of the readers: Genocide is a very serious allegation. The Canadian "government" has not recognized what is claimed to be genocide of the Armenians.
The suffering of Armenians, Turks and others during and before WWI in Ottoman Turkey is to be respected, but not to be distorted or made the subject of hate. It is such ill-conceived hatred that took the life of a member of this Embassy and seriously wounded others in this country. Canadian Parliament's declarations, encouraged by the Armenian Diaspora, are not a substitute for historical facts.
It is very revealing that the Armenian side has yet to respond positively to Turkey's offer to bring together scholars from both countries as well as others to open all archives and properly investigate all allegations. As for the "quarrel over the disputed territory of Nogorno-Karabagh," Armenia has yet to join peaceful and democratic nations in rejecting military action and occupation as a way of solving disputes. Turkey was one of the first countries to recognize Armenia's independence, but Armenia has gravely disappointed Turkey and the international community since then.
(Editor's Note: the Canadian government did recognize the genocide in Armenia on April 21, 2004 when the Liberal caucus accepted a Bloc Quebecois motion reading "That this House acknowledges the Armenian genocide of 1915 and condemns this act as a crime against humanity.")
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Embassy,
LETTERS
Aydemir Erman Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Canada
It is unfortunate that Armenia's Ambassador to Canada, Ara Papian, found it diplomatically appropriate to use his farewell interview with Embassy to incriminate Turkey (Re: Diplomatic Circles, Embassy Feb. 1). I hesitate to speak after a departing colleague, yet the record has to be set straight for the sake of the readers: Genocide is a very serious allegation. The Canadian "government" has not recognized what is claimed to be genocide of the Armenians.
The suffering of Armenians, Turks and others during and before WWI in Ottoman Turkey is to be respected, but not to be distorted or made the subject of hate. It is such ill-conceived hatred that took the life of a member of this Embassy and seriously wounded others in this country. Canadian Parliament's declarations, encouraged by the Armenian Diaspora, are not a substitute for historical facts.
It is very revealing that the Armenian side has yet to respond positively to Turkey's offer to bring together scholars from both countries as well as others to open all archives and properly investigate all allegations. As for the "quarrel over the disputed territory of Nogorno-Karabagh," Armenia has yet to join peaceful and democratic nations in rejecting military action and occupation as a way of solving disputes. Turkey was one of the first countries to recognize Armenia's independence, but Armenia has gravely disappointed Turkey and the international community since then.
(Editor's Note: the Canadian government did recognize the genocide in Armenia on April 21, 2004 when the Liberal caucus accepted a Bloc Quebecois motion reading "That this House acknowledges the Armenian genocide of 1915 and condemns this act as a crime against humanity.")
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
posted by Vahe Balabanian at 5:28 PM
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