Today we live in a society, which can not imagine life without expressing views on social media. Probably it does have certain advantages. Nevertheless, many participants of active discussions have already forgotten or do not even know about the developments, which unfolded in Armenia 5, 10 or 15 years ago.
To fill the gap Mediamax presents 5/10/15 project, which introduce developments in Armenia 5, 10 and 15 years ago.
• 15 YEARS AGO: APRIL 20-26, 2005
“The right to remember became the victim of the Cold War”
Armenian president Robert Kocharyan said in Yerevan on April 20 that the recognition of the Armenian Genocide “is vital for Armenian-Turkish relations, since it will give answers to many questions existing between our nations and will give an opportunity to face the future”.
“We remember the past with bitterness but without hate. It’s hard for us to understand the aggressive reaction of the Turkish side which is expressed not only in the denial of the past but also in the blockade of today’s Armenia. We are confronted with a paradox which should be understood. The side responsible for the tragic past bears malice, not the victims. We are certain that the international recognition of the Genocide will allow Turkey to put up with its past, overcome the complex which, having passed on from generation to generation creates new difficulties in relations between our neighbor nations,” he said at the international conference “Ultimate crime, ultimate challenge: genocide and human rights”.
Robert Kocharyan on April 20, 2005Photo: Photolure
Kocharyan also said:
“The World War I with its global interests to alter the world and the great ideological confrontation of the 20th century which has followed it, became the principal obstacles on the path of recognition of Armenian people’s legal rights. We have become the victims of the World War I, though we have not launched it. Our right to remember became the victim of the Cold War.”
George Bush supports Erdogan’s proposal
On April 24 U. S. President George W. Bush spoke of the “forced exile and mass killings of as many as 1.5 million Armenians during the last days of the Ottoman Empire”.
“We look to a future of freedom, peace, and prosperity in Armenia and Turkey and hope that Prime Minister Erdogan's recent proposal for a joint Turkish-Armenian commission can help advance these processes,” said George W. Bush.
The letter of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan, which President Bush mentioned, was sent to Armenian President on April 10, 2005. In his letter, Turkish PM particularly suggested “establishing a joint group consisting of historians and other experts from our two countries to study the developments and events of 1915 not only in the archives of Turkey and Armenia but also in the archives of all relevant third countries and to share their findings with the international public”.
Kocharyan’s response to Erdogan
On April 26 Armenian President Robert Kocharyan responded to Erdogan’s proposal.
Robert Kocharyan on April 24, 2005Photo: Photolure
The response read in particular:
“Your proposal to touch upon the past cannot be productive if it doesn’t refer to the present and to the past. In order to get involved into a productive dialogue we need to create a favorable and relevant political environment. The responsibility for the development of bilateral relations lies with the governments and we are not authorized to entrust it to the historians. Taking this into consideration, we have suggested and still suggest establishing normal relations between our countries without preconditions.”
• 10 YEARS AGO: APRIL 20-26, 2010
Ratification is put on hold
On April 22 political councils of parties, included in the ruling coalition, made a joint statement in which they suggested putting the process of ratifying Armenian-Turkish protocols in the National Assembly of Armenia on hold.
The political councils of the Republican Party of Armenia, “Prosperous Armenia” Party and “Orinats Yerkir” party grounded the suggestion by the fact that Turkey put forward preconditions and violated the agreements, reached earlier.
On the same day Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan declared that Armenia was suspending the procedure of ratifying the Armenian-Turkish Protocols but keeping the signature on those documents.
He said in a televised address:
“For a whole year, Turkey’s senior officials have not spared public statements in the language of preconditions. For a whole year, Turkey has done everything to protract time and fail the process. Hence, our conclusion and position are straightforward:
1.Turkey is not ready to continue the process that was started and to move forward without preconditions in line with the letter of the Protocols.
2.The reasonable timeframes have, in our opinion, elapsed. The Turkish practice of bypassing the 24th of April at any cost is simply unacceptable.
3.We consider unacceptable the pointless efforts of making the dialogue between Armenia and Turkey an end in itself; from this moment on, we consider the current phase of normalization exhausted”.
Armenian Catholicos travels to Azerbaijan
Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II made a one-day visit to Baku on April 26 to participate in the Second World Summit of Religious Leaders.
• 5 YEARS AGO: APRIL 20-26, 2015
The canonization ceremony and the SOAD concert
On April 23 the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin held the Canonization of Martyrs Ceremony, followed by national moment of silence at 19:15.
Photo: Photolure
Soon afterwards System of a Down concert kicked off in Republic Square in Yerevan.
Photo: Photolure
Davutoglu’s statement
On April 21, 4 days prior to the Armenian Genocide Centennial, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu made a statement to “express condolences of the Turkish government and its people to the Armenian people”.
He added that on April 24 the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey would serve a special ceremony in commemoration of “the victims of mass killings and deportations”.
Ahmet Davutoglu Photo: REUTERS
“To protect the memory of the Ottoman Armenians and the Armenian cultural heritage is a humane and historic duty of Turkey. With this understanding, the Ottoman Armenians will be commemorated in Turkey just like in the entire world through a religious ceremony to be held on April 24 by the Armenian Patriarchate,” Davutoglu said in a statement.
“It’s possible to identify the reasons and perpetrators of what happened during the World War I. However, demoting everything to a single word and to put the responsibility solely on the Turkish people and associating it with hate speech is consciously and legally problematic. As the descendants of two nations that shared good and bad times 100 years ago, we are responsible for healing the wounds of the past. Turkey is not indifferent to this responsibility. We will continue doing everything possible to establish peace and friendship,” he stated.
Austria recognizes the Armenian Genocide
On April 21 the Austrian parliament adopted a resolution condemning the Armenian Genocide.
The joint statement adopted by 6 political parties represented in the Austrian parliament noted that the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire 100 years ago were “genocide’’.
German President: “It was genocide”
On April 24 German President Joachim Gauck called the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire 100 years ago “genocide”.
Joachim Gauck Photo: REUTERS
“The fate of the Armenians is an example of the history of mass exterminations, ethnic cleansing, deportations and, yes, the genocides that left such a terrible mark on the 20th century. This planned, criminally calculated act struck Armenians for one reason alone: because they were Armenians,” he said at the Armenian Genocide Centennial event at the Berlin Cathedral, dedicated to the Centennial of the Genocide.
Putin: “1915 events shook the whole world”
On April 24 in Yerevan, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that “the Russian people are mourning with the Armenian people today”.
Vladimir Putin made that remark while addressing a speech at the remembrance ceremony of the Armenian Genocide Centennial at the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial.
“1915 events shook the whole world and Russia perceived them as our own pain. Thousands of Armenians found sanctuaries in Russia and survived. Today we are mourning together with the Armenian people. Around 2000 remembrance events will be held in hundreds of Russian cities today,” he said.
Vladimir Putin in Yerevan on April 24, 2015Photo: REUTERS
According to Putin, Russia’s stance had been and was that mass killings of people had no justification.
Vladimir Putin stressed that the international community ought to do its best so as the tragic events of past would not ever happen again.
Erdogan’s condolences
On April 24 President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan extended condolences to the Armenian community of Turkey.
“On this day that carries a special significance for our Armenian citizens, I once again respectfully commemorate all the Ottoman Armenians who lost their lives amid the conditions of the World War I and extend my condolences to their children and grandchildren,” said the Turkish President.
According to him, “Armenian community’s economic, social, cultural and political contributions both to the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Turkey will always be remembered with appreciation”.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan Photo: REUTERS
At the same time, Erdogan noted that “millions from all nations also perished within the boundaries of the Ottoman Empire”.
“We succeeded in establishing the Republic of Turkey not by forgetting these sufferings, but by learning to cope with them. Today, we are working and striving together with all our citizens and friends, regardless of their ethnic or religious identities, to attain a better future on the basis of peace, harmony and fraternity,” said Erdogan.
He added that Turkey “is cognizant of the sorrowful events experienced in the past by the Armenian community and sincerely shares their pain”.
Ara Tadevosyan
Comments
Dear visitors, You can place your opinion on the material using your Facebook account. Please, be polite and follow our simple rules: you are not allowed to make off - topic comments, place advertisements, use abusive and filthy language. The editorial staff reserves the right to moderate and delete comments in case of breach of the rules.