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TORONTO ARMENIANS
The 10th Annual Genocide & Human Rights University Program Will Commence In August
The International Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies recently announced that it s now receiving applications for the 2011 Genocide and Human Rights University Program (GHRUP). The program, now in its 10th year, is a comprehensive, two-week, 65hour graduate-level seminar taught by ten leading experts in their fields. It uses a comparative and multi-disciplinary approach, incorporating genocide theory, history, sociology, political science and international law. The program is offered in collaboration with the University of Toronto, which allows registered students to earn graduate-level credits. This course has always been a unique opportunity for students to experience a broad comparative perspective on genocide. said Prof. Roger W. Smith, Director of the GHRUP. We are continuing to build on our experience, and are very proud that among the faculty we have not only some of the foremost scholars in their respective fields, but also individuals who are active in international efforts to both document and prevent genocide around the world. During the program, students and faculty form a solid basis for further interaction and cooperation. I will be pleased this summer to
see our tradition of developing a new generation of scholars to engage in genocide research and publication, continue to grow. So far, some 250 students have completed the course. Graduates describe the experience as a great mix of interests and perspectives provided for a broad range of topics that go beyond the printed topic list. Through a comparative analysis of several case studies (such as the Armenian Genocide, the Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda, Darfur) and a number of special themes, the GHRUP explores issues such as: The Development of Human Rights and Its Relation to Genocide, Causes of Genocide, Patterns of Genocide, Women, Children and Genocide, International Law and Genocide, Conflict Resolution & Reconciliation, Genocide Denial, and Genocide Prevention. The aim of the program is to provide students with the intellectual framework for understanding the numerous complex issues related to genocide as a universal human experience. It is well suited for motivated students who are passionate about human rights and are interested in pursuing careers in the fields of genocide research, teaching, international criminal law and journalism. Applicants must be current or recent
Taner Akcam Lectures on Turkey s Denial of the Armenian Genocide
GHRUP 2010 class with prof. Levon Marashlian. university students with a minimum of three years of successful undergraduate experience. The GHRUP will be held in Toronto, August 1-12. Students are urged to send in their
international students requiring visas. For details go to: www.genocidestudies.org Or email: admin@genocidestudies.org.
Candle Light Vigil Ceremony in Honour of Armenian Genocide
by Katya Der Hovagimian and Daniel Ohanian
by Tamar Atik
On March 18, the Armenians Students Association at Ryerson University, Armen Karo Student Association and Zoryan Institute hosted an educational lecture at Ryerson University. The guest speaker was Prof. Taner Akçam, the first scholar of Turkish origin to acknowledge and publish on the Armenian Genocide. Dr. Akçam is an associate professor with the department of history at Clark University and holds the Robert Aram and Marianne Kaloosdian, and Stephen and Marion Mugar Chair in Armenian Genocide Studies. He also serves on the editorial board of Genocide Studies and Prevention, the official journal of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, published in partnership with the Zoryan Institute and the University of Toronto Press. The speaker was introduced by the moderator of the event Daniel Ohanian of Armen Karo Student Association. Akçam noted that since 1919, affirmation of the Armenian Genocide (and its antonym, denial) has been inseparably linked with Turkey s territorial integrity. He argued that by refusing to come to terms with its past, the government of Turkey avoids the possibility of losing control of its borders and its society s sense of national and historic identity. He explained that in Turkey, affirmation of the Armenian Genocide is seen as a threat to Turkey s borders and public order (i.e. national security) it is not a protected form of speech. This attitude create[s] [the] mindset that views any reference to the past as a threat to Turkish national security, Akçam explained. The scholar believes this frame of mind ultimately led the murder of Hrant Dink in January 2007 in Istanbul. The linkage of the acknowledgement of the Armenian atrocities and Turkish national security began in 1919, after the end of the First World War. On April 24, 1920, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk infamously labelled the genocide a shameful act. This was seen as a concession necessary to winning favour at the post-war peace talks. At that time, recognition meant securing the cohesion of the state. As Akçam put it, war crime trial was the price they had to pay for national security and they wanted to impress the foreign elements, Once they realised that the Turkish Military Tribunals set up to convict Talat and his henchmen was going
April 24, 2011 will mark the 96th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915. The atrocities committed under Turkish Ottoman rule at the start of the 20th century will be commemorated in an official Candle Light Vigil ceremony at Queen s Park on April 26. Every year, the Candle Light Vigil is organized by the representatives of different Armenian youth groups from all churches and communities who collaborate under the name Armenian Youth of Toronto. The combination of Armenian youth every year at the Candle Light Vigil ceremony acts as a way to honour the lives of the more than 1.5 million Armenians who were brutally murdered in their homeland in Eastern Turkey. Moreover, it proves that the youth continue to commemorate the lives of those who have fallen victim to the atrocities committed by the Ottoman Empire, and that the candle of our past is still burning bright. Other genocides which occurred after the Armenian Genocide have already been universally accepted, including the Jewish Holocaust (1933-1945), the Cambodian Genocide (1975-1979) and the Rwandan Genocide (1994). But though the Armenian Genocide is still denied by its perpetrators, Armenians have never ceased to battle the Turkish denial policy and to strive worldwide to persuade the Turkish government to make amends for the massacres committed in a genocide which was one of the first of the 20th century. Today, twenty countries have already passed resolutions reaffirming that the murderous crimes committed against Turkey s Armenian population in 1915 are indeed a Crime Against Humanity, a genocide. These countries are: Uruguay, Cyprus, Argentina, Russia, Greece, Lebanon, Belgium, France, Sweden, Vatican City, Italy, Switzerland, Slovakia, The Netherlands, Poland, Venezuela,
to start prosecuting members of Ataturk s own government, their support for it quickly faded away. By August 1920, these perpetrators were given the honorifics Children of the Homeland. From then on, denial has been part of succeeding governments strategies of dealing with the genocide issue. Speaking about the Armenian population under Ottoman rule, he called them modernists in that they were asking for nothing but security and more self-government. He acknowledged Armenians of the 19th and 20th century as being ahead of their time, who believed that democratization of the Empire is possible and explained their defeat as being the result of lack of support from European powers. Speaking about the issue of possible return of Armenian properties to the heirs of their original owners, Akçam pointed out that there is no law that states Armenians cannot reclaim ownership of their abandoned properties. Moreover, up until 1928, Turkish law specifically allowed for return of such properties. Regarding possible acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide by the current government of Turkey, Akçam stated that while the ruling pro-Islamic government was willing to accept the genocide, it ran into internal conflicts. Now the party realizes that if they risk an opening, they could lose some votes to the Nationalist Movement Party [MHP]. Nonetheless, the scholar noted that through his direct conversations with Turkish intellectuals, he can say Turkey is in fact ready to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. In his final answer to an audience question, Akçam expressed the notion that it s better to pay more attention to the democracy movement in Turkey than to invest so many resources elsewhere in the Armenian diaspora. He believes that if Armenians spend just half of the energy allocated for acceptance of the Armenian Genocide to human rights movements in Turkey, much more can be achieved. He believes a new paradigm for the Turkish-Armenian conflict is needed and the concept of Turkish national security must be changed and revised. We have to work very hard to get the apology, at least in 2015, he concluded.
applications as early as possible, especially
Germany, Lithuania, Chile, and Canada. The European Union also passed a parliamentary resolution most recently in 2005. The solemn Candle Light Vigil ceremony at Queen s Park is an opportunity for youth to gather and keep the memories of the genocide victims alive year after year. A number of performances are lined up for this year s commemoration including a solo dance, a duduk trio, recitation of poem, and a patriotic song in memory of the Genocide by talented performers from the Armenian community. Following the Candle Light Vigil, refreshments will be available at the Hart House Theatre located on the University of Toronto s St. George campus. The Masters of Ceremony for the event will be University of Toronto student Tamar Ohanian and York University student Narbeh Edjiu who will be speaking in English and Armenian respectively. The Candle Light Vigil at Queen s Park has been successful every year as a result of the support gained by the numerous members of Toronto s Armenian community who gather and remember the darkest days of Armenian history. The need to spread awareness about the Armenian Genocide and to seek reparations for what has been done is incredibly important now more than ever before. As the one hundredth anniversary of the Armenian Genocide nears, the Armenian Diaspora must push forward for the final goal of restoring justice to the millions who were hung, shot, mutilated, burned, starved, drowned, and converted to Islam during the horrific events called the Armenian Genocide. The flame brought forth through the annual Candle Light Vigil commemoration must never be extinguished, and the Armenian Genocide never forgotten.
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