Invites Armenian organizations to remain vigilant in the face of renewed Turkish efforts to manipulate Europe’s Armenian community.
BRUSSELS–In the wake of the recent announcement of the creation of a successor commission to the failed Turkish Armenian Reconciliation Commission–the Armenian National Committee of Europe (CDCA Europe) has launched a Europe-wide Armenian initiative to bring together the continent’s Armenian organizations in opposition to Turkey’s efforts to manipulate Armenia’s in pursuit of their Armenian Genocide denial campaign.
"At the outset–we are inviting the various associations of Europe to sign a Joint Declaration warning of the dangers of this commission–and underscoring the damage done to the Armenian Cause by the previous one. In this declaration–European organizations denounce the basic assumption underlying the activities of TARC – the idea that the historical truth of the Armenian Genocide was still subject to debate and that the Genocide was merely a dispute to be argued between the Armenia’s and the Turks"–declares Hilda Tchoboian–Chairwoman of the CDCA Europe. "While understanding the role that real dialogue can play between Armenia’s and Turks–it must be recognized that TARC served as nothing but a tool for Turkey to attempt to derail–at times with success –recent international progress toward recognition of the Armenian Genocide".
In view of this fact–European Armenian organizations–the political parties represented in the Armenian Parliament–and the Armenian public opinion worldwide have rejected this Commission.
"We are deeply troubled that this new TARC is only a re-emergence of the former one – that its new formulation will–just like the original TARC–simply be a smoke screen created to help Turkey advance its true goal of obstructing international recognition of the Genocide," noted Tchoboian.
"Far from taking any sincere steps toward the recognition of the Armenian Genocide–Turkey has instead consistently maintained its blockade of Armenia and pursued expansionist regional policies–endangering the stability of the Caucasus and the security of Armenia," the CDCA leader added.
Tchoboian also affirmed that–despite this new initiative–the Armenia’s of Europe remain committed to actively supporting the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide–and call upon European associations and citizens to join in this declaration.
Joint Declaration of Armenian Organizations Of Europe Against the Reemergence of TARC
According to recent press accounts–the so-called Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation Commission (TARC) is about to be reactivated under a newly conceived format.
At this early stage–we reserve specific commentary on the nature of this undertaking–which is being promoted as the successor organism of the "Commission" that was previously active.
It is important to remember that the basic assumption underlying the activities of TARC was the idea that the historical truth of the Armenian Genocide was still subject to debate–that the Genocide was merely a dispute to be argued between the Armenia’s and the Turks–and that future efforts in this regard–and their ultimate consequences–should be relegated to the field of historical research.
In reality–this "Commission" served as nothing but a tool for Turkey to attempt to derail–at times with success–recent international progress toward recognition of the Armenian Genocide by various world bodies.
In view of these facts–the European Armenian organizations–the political parties represented in the Armenian Parliament–and the Armenian public opinion worldwide have rejected this "Commission". Therefore–while reaffirming our support for the principle of dialogue between two nations with regard to all questions of common interest–we strongly denounce all attempts at reconstituting this so-called Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation Commission–and we emphasize that such initiatives are nothing but new iterations of the Turkish government’s denial of the Armenian Genocide.
Far from taking any sincere steps toward the recognition of the Armenian Genocide–Turkey has instead consistently maintained its blockade of Armenia and pursued expansionist regional policies–endangering the stability of the Caucasus and the security of Armenia.
Therefore–in light of the international community’s obligation to hold Turkey accountable for its responsibilities–and despite this new initiative–we commit ourselves to actively pursuing international recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
At the same time–we call upon all organizations–associations and individuals–who share a commitment to the principles of justice and truth–to be vigilant and place this new "Commission" on notice against all new attempts to prolong or legitimize the denialist policies of the Turkish government