Turkey Discontent with Genocide Conference in Stockholm

PanARMENIAN.Net - An international conference marking the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide was held in Stockholm November 15. Turks were discontent with the results of the event. Turkish Embassy representative in Stockholm complained that Turkish historian Kemal Cicek was provided less time for a statement, than others. The organizational commission representatives responded that the time for speeches at the conference was provided to everyone beforehand and if there were complaints, these should have been made at the time, stated organizational commission representative Karo Hakobyan. One could judge from the conference name that it will discuss various historical aspects of the Armenian Genocide, not the official viewpoint of Turkey, he added.



Turkish press and the Foreign Ministry also accuse organizers of the international conference in Stockholm in allegedly not allowing Hurriyet journalists' presence at the event. Swedish Ambassador to Turkey has refuted this rumor. The matter is that everyone, including information agencies were notified beforehand that there no photography will be allowed, however the entire conference will be shot and all materials and photos will be available. At the beginning of the conference, Turkish journalists both held photography and took a film about the event, after which the conference chairman again demanded to stop photography. However, they were allowed to record the speeches. Turks were discontent they did not manage to repeat their traditional script and capture all those present at the conference (apparently, for investigation purposes), as it was the case with a similar conference in Upsala, Karo Hakobyan said. Many people were surprised that the Turkish Embassy agreed to take part in a conference on the Armenian Genocide.



Turks were also discontent with professor Kemal Cicek not being able to justify them - also due to his insufficient English proficiency, but most importantly - due to contradictory expressions. He stated the following, «Armenians should be grateful for their being deported and taken away from the zone of hostilities.» He also said, «Europeans should not accuse Ottoman Turks in absence of democracy, as there was no democracy in European countries either and all European countries committed genocides against their national minorities.» The following words were interesting, «I love Armenians, I love you all, thus you should all love me, too.» Kemal Cicek urged the parties to form a commission of historians to discuss the issue and come to a decision. However professors Tatryan and Gaunt refused, saying free access should be provided to archives for historians to engage in their business without external interference. Then Cicek made a suggestion to professor Tatryan, «Welcome to the archives, bring your Armenian money and take away the archives.» The conference materials will of course be published, reported the Union of Armenian Associations of Sweden.