Armine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLllnJI7dsc&feature=player_embedded

MosJan contact me early if you want me to take care of it.

Americana - 12pm ($25) 3pm ($25) 6pm ($30) 9pm ($30) you can call the number and get tickets to make sure you have it or show up and hope the promoter left tickets at the theater.

if anyone wants tickets call 818-265-0506, they have it

I heard that the Khachagoghi Hishatakaran will be playing at the Americana tomorrow, Septemer 19 - does anyone have details or know how to reserve tickets???

Thank you for your kind hearted wishes

We will call him..... Mini MosJan Who says there are no miracles???

It’s not a new Turkey, it’s the right time By Ramzy Baroud Uri Avnery’s assessment of the recent Israeli-Turkish diplomatic and political row - that “the relationship between Turkey and Israel will probably return to normal, if not to its former degree of warmth” – seems sensible and daring. In my view, however, it is also inaccurate. Simply put, there is just no going back. In a recent article entitled “Israel Must Get Used to the New Turkey,” Suat Kiniklioğlu, Deputy Chairman of External Affairs for Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) wrote, “Israel appears to be yearning for the golden 1990s, which were the product of a very specific situation in the region. Those days are over and are unlikely to come back even if the Justice and Development Party (AKP) ends up no longer being in government.” This assessment seems more consistent with reality. One would agree with Avnery’s optimistic reading of events if the recent row was caused by just a couple of isolated incidents, for example, the gutsy public exchange over Gaza between Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and Israel’s President Shimon Peres at the World Economic Forum in late January 2009, or the recent premeditated humiliation of Oguz Celikkol, Turkish Ambassador to Israel, by Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon. However, these incidents are anything but isolated. They reflect a clear and probably irreversible shift in Turkish foreign policy towards Israel, the U.S. and the Middle East as a whole. For decades Turkey was torn between its historical ties to Muslim and Arab countries on the one hand, and the unstoppable drive towards Westernization on the other. The latter seemed much more influential in forming the new Turkish identity in its individual, collective, and thus foreign policy manifestation and outlook. But even during the push and pull, Turkey grew in import as a political and economic player. It also grew into a nation with a decisive sense of sovereignty, a growing sense of pride and a daring capacity for asserting itself as a regional power. In the 1970s, when ‘political Islam’ was on the rise throughout the region, Turkey was experiencing its own rethink, and various politicians and groups began grappling with the idea of taking political Islam to a whole new level. In fact, it was Dr. Necmettin Erbakan, the Prime Minister of Turkey between 1996 and 1997 who began pushing against the conventional notion of Turkey as a second-class NATO member desperate to identify with everything Western. In the late 1980s Erbakan’s Rafah Party (the Welfare Party) took Turkey by storm. The party was hardly apologetic about its Islamic roots and attitude. Its rise to power as a result of the 1995 general elections raised alarm, as the securely ‘pro-Western’ Turkey was deviating from the very the rigid script that wrote off the country’s regional role as that of a “lackey of NATO.” According to Salama A Salama, who coined the phrase in a recent article in Al-Ahram Weekly, Turkey is no longer this ‘lackey’. And according to Kiniklioğlu, that’s something “Israel must get used to”. The days of Erbakan might be long gone. But the man’s legacy registered something that never departed Turkish national consciousness. He pushed the boundary, dared to champion pro-Palestinian policies, defied Western dictates and even pressed for economic repositioning of his country with the creation of the Developing Eight (D-8), uniting the most politically significant Arab and Muslim countries. When Erbakan was forced to step down in a ‘postmodernist’ military coup, it was understood as the end of short-lived political experiment which ended up proving that even a benign form of political Islam was not to be tolerated in Turkey. The army emerged, once again, all powerful. But things have changed drastically since then. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) was elected to power in 2002. The AK Party leadership was composed of savvy, yet principled politicians who aimed for change and even a geopolitical shift in their country’s regional political outlook. The AK Party began to lead a self-assertive Turkey which was neither pleading for European acceptance nor American validation. By rejecting the use of Turkish territories as a launchpad of a U.S. strike against Iraq in 2003, Turkey was acquiring a voice, and a strong one at that - with wide democratic representation and growing popular support. The trend continued, and in recent years Turkey dared translate its political power and prowess into action, without immediately severing the political and military balances that took years to build. So, for example, while it continued to honor past military deals with Israel, it also made many successful overtures to Syria and Iran. And, in being willing to be seen as a unifier in the age of Muslim and Arab disunity, it refused to take part in the conveniently set up camps of ‘moderates’ and ‘extremists’. Instead it maintained good ties with all its neighbors, and its Arab allies. Starting in 2007, the U.S. began seeing the emergence of the “New Turkey”. U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to the country soon after his inauguration was one of many signs that the West was taking notice of Turkey’s ‘special’ status. Turkey is not to be bullied, threatened, or intimidated. Even Israel, which has for long defied the norms of diplomacy, is now becoming more aware of its limits, thanks to Turkish President Abdullah Gül. Following Israel’s belligerent insult of the Turkish Ambassador, he said, "Unless there is a formal apology from Israel, we're going to put Celikkol on the first plane back to Ankara." Israel, of course, apologized, and humbly so. It took Turkey many years to reach this level of confidence and the country is hardly eager to be anyone’s ‘lackey’ now. More, Turkey’s united and constant stance in support of Gaza, and its outspokenness against the threats against Lebanon, Iran and Syria show clearly that the old days of “warmth” are well behind us. Turkey, of course, will find a very receptive audience among Arabs and Muslims all over the world who are desperate for a powerful and sensible leadership to defend and champion their causes. Needless to say, for the besieged Palestinians in Gaza, Erdogan is becoming a household name, a folk hero, a new Nasser in fact. The same sentiment is shared throughout the region. - Ramzy Baroud (www.ramzybaroud.net) is an internationally-syndicated columnist and the editor of PalestineChronicle.com. His latest book is "My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza's Untold Story" (Pluto Press, London), now available on Amazon.com. My link

Meschian... in Montreal early 90s..... "El votch mi visht... el votch me vokhp..."

The name of the Ergenekon Street turned to Hrant Dink Street This is an old story. The street is very close to AGOS and the erea was an old non-muslim settlement. ( Old name is Tatavla, a Greek name) But after republic step by step some street names changed, I dont know exactly when the street's name turned to Ergenekon, but there are some reliable resources about this issue in Turkish.If you want we can look at them and find exact date -probably in 70's or maybe earlier. Ergenekon is one of the famous stories originated from central-Asian Turkish mythology and nationalist are giving too much importance to this kind of things - and you know the trial in Turkey in the same name aginst a dark group called themselves as Ergenekon inside the army and the state bureaucracy which tried to realize a coup d'etat a few years ago, too many people believe -and actually know- that Dink suicide is a part of their works. One other example, Bozkurt (grey-wolf), it is another famous symbol for Turkish nationalism (very similar with Roman history). And another thing, this street is maybe 100 metres far from the point Hrant murdered. hrantdinkstreet.zip

Agos Editor Seropyan: Ergenekon case was Hrant’s dream Agos editors Sarkis Seropyan (L) and Pakrat Estukyan spoke with Today’s Zaman at their newspaper office. If Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was fatally shot in front of the headquarters of the bilingual Armenian weekly Agos in 2007, were alive today, he would have been overjoyed that the Ergenekon gang is being investigated, Agos Editor Sarkis Seropyan has said. “If Hrant were alive and saw the Ergenekon case, he would have been over the moon,” he told Today’s Zaman for Monday Talk. “He would have supported the Ergenekon case much more than what we are able to do at Agos. He would not have been satisfied just by presenting the news related to Ergenekon.” Seropyan was referring to the investigation into Ergenekon, a neo-nationalist gang believed to be the extension of a clandestine network of groups with members in the armed forces and accused of being behind a number of unsolved murders of journalists, academics, public-opinion leaders and writers. ‘If Hrant were alive and saw the Ergenekon case, he would have been over the moon. He would jump for joy. He would have supported the Ergenekon case much more than what we are able to do at Agos. He would not have been satisfied just by presenting the news related to Ergenekon. This case against Ergenekon was his dream. It was his dream that those people’s [defendants in the Ergenekon case] masks would drop’ “It was his dream that those people’s masks would drop,” Seropyan said, referring to alleged members of Ergenekon investigated by the İstanbul Public Prosecutor’s Office. An investigation in the wake of the Dink assassination revealed that a group of ultranationalists was behind the murder. Strong evidence suggested that some members of the group had ties with the police department in northern Trabzon, the hometown of the plotters. Some gendarmes later confirmed that they had been tipped off about the plot to kill Dink before the murder was committed. The Dink family lawyers have frequently leveled allegations that police have attempted to obscure evidence. Fethiye Çetin, who represents the Dink family in the trial, had told Monday Talk in 2008 that some people who have been arrested as a result of the Ergenekon operation were very active in the process leading to Dink’s murder. However, although three years have passed since Dink was killed, the investigation into this vicious murder has yielded no conclusion. Both Agos editors say Hrant was unique Sarkis Seropyan, one of the founding members of Agos, worked closely with Hrant Dink as an editor until his murder on Jan. 19, 2007. Pakrat Estukyan has been an editor at Agos for two years and writes for the Armenian pages. Both editors say Dink was so different and unconventional that people would have difficulty categorizing him in one group or another. Two Agos editors, Seropyan and Pakrat Estukyan, answered our questions about Agos after Hrant Dink and more. Following the murder of Hrant Dink, you continued to publish Agos without any interruptions. How did that happen? Seropyan: A lot of people flooded our offices right after the news. People -- some of them we knew and some we did not know or like -- came to help us to put out the paper. With their support, we were able to publish a special issue. Indeed, they did it. Long-time Agos page designer Ümit Kıvanç, who is no longer with us, did the unforgettable front page. That issue sold about 50,000 copies even though our circulation did not normally exceed 5,000. What is your circulation now? Seropyan: With that special issue, we had an upsurge in our circulation, and since then it has gradually decreased and come to a balance of around 8,000-10,000 copies. “Friends of Hrant” has just released a press statement noting that it’s been three years since his murder and those who masterminded it are still free. What do you think? Seropyan: In honor killings, adults use minors to avoid harsher punishments, and this seems like what adults did in planning Hrant’s murder. A report prepared by the Dink family lawyers indicates the facts and the process in which the case was not resolved despite those facts very well. There are only a couple of boys that have been brought before the court as assassins. Some of the people whose breath I sometimes felt on my neck during the hearings are now being tried in connection with Ergenekon. They were so-called lawyers, jurists, generals, etc., but they are now responsible to the court. Sooner or later, Hrant’s case is going to be linked with the Ergenekon case even though we don’t know how far Ergenekon will be pursued. But if it is pursued, it will be good for the country. If Hrant were alive and saw the Ergenekon case, he would be over the moon. He would jump for joy. He would have supported the Ergenekon case much more than what we are able to do at Agos He would not have been satisfied just by presenting the news related to Ergenekon. This case against Ergenekon was his dream. It was his dream that those people’s masks would drop. ‘Turkish-Armenian relations will normalize’ When Agos was found in 1996, one of its goals was to contribute to the normalization of relations between Turkey and Armenia. Do you still have hopes for that as there are steps in that regard? Seropyan: Those are delayed steps. I was more hopeful at the beginning but not now. On both sides, the nationalist forces are too powerful, and they are not even warm to the idea of having good neighborly relations, let alone being friends. The opposition says that everything the governments are doing in the process is wrong and they are right! I would like to turn to Mr. Estukyan at this point and ask his opinion on the same issue. Are you hopeful that relations will improve with Armenia? Estukyan: I am hopeful, even though I agree with Sarkis that politicians are not usually sincere and the opposition does not help either. But I am hopeful because the world is changing in such a way that there is a requirement for the resolution of old problems, especially in the Caucasus. In the past, only military power and military pacts have been important in this strategically important part of the world. But now the issue is about the region’s energy resources, transportation routes and how they can be safe and secure. Armenia and Turkey are both in the region, and a conflict in that area would not contribute to development and the transfer of energy resources. The West apparently does not want to take that risk, and both the United States and the European Union think the same way. Do you think the international community will also help eliminate problems between Armenia and Azerbaijan? Estukyan: It has to. It has to do that in order to end the conflicts in the region that are causing instability. Seropyan: I’d like to add that I don’t find politicians sincere, but eventually the borders will be opened and people will interact more. From the founding of the Turkish Republic until very recently, Turkish authorities have declared that “Turkey is surrounded by enemies.” How has it been possible that Turkey has been on bad terms with all of its neighbors? This is changing now in a positive direction. Are all the neighbors of Turkey now good but Armenia? This will change, too. What do you think Dink would have done at Agos in relation to the Ergenekon case? Can you imagine it? Seropyan: He was so different. He would have done something that we cannot even think about. Fatih Sultan Mehmet [“the Conqueror”] II had his warships transported overland. Hrant would have his ships moved overland as well. We can’t even dream about it. What strikes you the most in the report prepared by the Dink family lawyers? Seropyan: The report repeats the sentence “Hrant Dink was killed on Jan. 19, 2007,” every few paragraphs. It reminds us of that fact frequently because we need to remember it frequently. We should never forget this fact, and we will not. If we forget this, the Ergenekon case will lose its importance. Turkey’s democratization process has been directly linked with Hrant’s murder. Nobody should forget that Hrant was killed on Jan. 19, 2007. Anybody who has real love for her or his country should remember this. We love this country. We love Anatolia, where our grandparents lived. When I go to Anatolia, I want to feel the land so much that I walk barefooted there. I don’t even do that in my home in İstanbul. I am 75 years old, and I have many diseases, from hypertension to diabetes, but I get better when I am in Anatolia. My blood pressure drops even though I eat salty cheese and rich foods there. Would Dink go to Anatolia as well? Seropyan: He would sometimes, but he did not have much time to do so. Before he was murdered, he took frequent trips abroad. He would be called to speak at conferences. He received his passport only a few years before his murder because he had been banned from exiting the country due to his leftist political activities in his youth. ‘Official policies no longer convince people’ Do you think Dink’s murder played a role in increasing empathy in Turkish society toward Armenians? Estukyan: Yes, it did. In the background of that empathy, there is the fact that the state’s official policies were no longer convincing for people. If the state had not adopted policies of denial, Dink’s murder could have been just another killing of a journalist. But at the moment that he was killed, 72 million in Turkey knew that he was killed because he was an Armenian. Why him but not other Armenians? Because he was telling the truth. The funeral ceremony clearly showed people’s reactions. Friends of Hrant ask: Who killed Hrant Dink? “And let us give the answer. It was an ‘official’ collective will that killed Hrant. Those who hold this will are brutal, coward and deceitful. They cannot come to light; they cannot dare to show themselves. “Remember the ‘Cage’ plot unearthed in the depths of the deep state. Remember how Hrant’s murder was defined as an ‘operation.’ “They are also trying to take us into their darkness, us -- the friends and lovers of Hrant demanding justice. They want to leave us breathless in the dust of court files, they want us to get weary of following the trials, they want us to feel despair in our pursuit of justice. We will not do so. We cannot afford it.” Do you think those feelings of empathy still exist? Estukyan: The initial euphoria died out after a while, but such events can be turning points in people’s lives. I saw a reflection of this in a column by Taraf writer Hilal Kaplan, who referred to Dink as “Hrant Abi” [brother Hrant]. She wrote that she was deeply affected by two events in her life: One is that she went to the university she wanted but was expelled because of her headscarf, and the second one is the murder of Dink. She further explained why she refers to Dink as “Hrant Abi,” someone she did not even know before his death. She wrote that she read all of Dink’s writings after his murder and felt close enough to call him “Hrant Abi” and that she feels so sorry that she never met him. By attending his funeral ceremony, she wrote, she felt like she was doing a meaningful thing in her life. Therefore, we can say that some people, especially intellectuals, have had similar experiences. But back to your question, if we are talking about the general public, I don’t think that that is the case. Some people who were at Dink’s funeral three years ago now think that the investigation into generals under the Ergenekon case is a scam by Islamists. There are paradoxes in Turkish society. Since Dink traveled abroad before his death and his ideas were being closely observed, how was he perceived there? Estukyan: With surprise, because he was an unconventional man. He would say that Turks are very good people but the state policies were fascist. For a typical Armenian who has never been to Turkey or never had contact with a Turk, that was not acceptable because he or she would think of Turks and the Turkish state as one. One positive that came out after Hrant’s death is that Turks and Armenians in Germany and France came together for memorial activities. Ever since Turkish people moved to Germany as workers -- and there were some Armenians among them -- Turkish and Armenian associations have avoided organized social activities together. So it is significant that they do this now. It is the success of Hrant’s words, which have been internalized by some people. Seropyan: Turkey has recently been talking about Mehmet Ali Ağca’s [who murdered Turkish journalist Abdi İpekçi and attempted to assassinate Pope John Paul II] release. I noticed on television last night that cameras showed Abdi İpekçi Street, and I asked myself why the İstanbul City Council chose not to rename Şafak Street, where Hrant was murdered, “Hrant Dink Street.” There have been comical explanations for that by the city council, including that postmen would have difficulties finding the street if its name were changed. This happened despite the fact that the İstanbul mayor comes to our commemorative activities for Hrant. There were similar problems when we had an initiative to construct a subtle memorial at the place where Hrant was murdered. I refer to this because your question was in regard to perceptions in Europe. In Marseilles, there are 16 streets named after influential Armenian people. There is also a street in Marseilles bearing Hrant’s name. In Paris, there is a school named “Hrant Dink.” In Armenia, there is a lecture room at a university named “Hrant Dink.” 18 January 2010, Monday YONCA POYRAZ DOĞAN İSTANBUL My link

“Top secret” document on Hrant Dink’s murder revealed “CNN Turk” televised an important document on Hrant Dink’s assassination which was carefully banned and not attached to the case. One of Hrant Dink’s family’s lawyers Bahri Belen has introduced the document recently. It was announced that the document having “top secret” note on it was sent to Istanbul court of serious crimes by the former chief of Drabzon security service Ramazan Aqureq. CNN Turk quotes the document as saying. “Ogyun Samasti who murdered Hrant Dink was met by Orhan Ozbash, Turan Meral and Qaan Gercheq in the station. Sali Hajisalioglu who provided the bullets is arrested and sent to Istanbul court. Djoshqun Igji who was arrested in Drabzon is currently set free by Istanbul state prosecutor’s office.” My link

“100 years ago we were 20% of this country, now we are not even one per thousand” In Turkish only Arat Dink at the commemoration Also check Nedim Sener’s detailed account of several layers of institutional negligence prior to the assassination. Nedim Sener is a researcher / journalist who has been sued two times in separate courts for his book “Hrant Dink and Intelligence Lies” -they are trying to sentence him with 28 years combined. Whereas Ogun Samast and the like are being tried for 20 year only. Add to this the fact that most of the police and gendarmerie personnel are not even investigated or brought to court at least as witnesses. http://video.ntvmsnbc.com/?95580#v016092076132149111239186134212238113143109012123

TURKEY IS TRYING TO DICTATE TO ARMENIA By Lee Jay Walker The Seoul Times Jan 22 2010 S. Korea The passages of time never heal completely when such crimes have been committed and the aggressor refuses to either admit to such barbaric crimes or makes lame excuses all the time. Despite this, Armenia entered talks with Turkey in the hope of solving long held problems and in the need to stabilize the region. However, leaders in Turkey are still trying to dictate and they are putting pre-conditions down on a conflict which is outside their remit. This applies to the ongoing crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh and the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Yet this issue involves Armenia and Azerbaijan and it is not up to Turkey to decide the fate of Nagorno-Karabakh. Yes, Turkey, just like the Russian Federation and Iran, and other regional nations and nations who are also concerned about this issue, does have a right to be concerned about regional problems but it must be "an honest broker" and not dictatorial. After all, would Turkey be happy if Armenia stated that Turkey must handover land to the Kurds or return land to the Armenians, Assyrians, and other ethnic groups who were "cleansed" in the early 20th century? It also must be remembered that Turkish military forces are still based throughout northern Cyprus and this is the problem with Turkey. For it appears that the leaders of Turkey suffer from historical amnesia. Also, nationalism is still a potent force within the major institutions of Turkey. If we look at the founding father of modern day Turkey, Kemal Ataturk, then it is clear that he himself supported the destruction of Christianity via the Armenian, Assyrian and Greek Christian genocide of 1915. Therefore, it is clear that Turkish nationalism and secularism is tainted by its anti-Christian nature and also its anti-Kurdish nature. After all, the nation state of Turkey was about Turkish nationalism and secularism did not protect the religious or ethnic minorities of this diverse nation. Some people in Turkey play "the religious card" and ply the mantra of Muslim brotherhood. However, this is also hollow because tens of thousands of mainly Muslim Kurds have been killed over the last few decades and many Kurdish villages were also destroyed. Also, the Alevi are a Muslim minority group in Turkey and they also face discrimination and massacres have taken place against them from time to time, for example in 1993 you had the Sivas massacre when radical Sunni Islamists killed many innocent people. Turning back to recent times the Foreign Minister of Armenia, Eduard Nalbandian, was very frank about the ongoing problem with Turkey. He stated that "Had there been preconditions, we would not have started this process and reached agreements in the first place." Nalbandian continued by stating that "If one of the parties is creating artificial obstacles, dragging out things, that means it is assuming responsibility for the failure of this process," and this can be seen to be a tacit warning to Turkey about the ongoing problems involving Armenia and Turkey. However, the Prime Minister of Turkey, Tayyip Erdogan, stated in October 2009 that "Turkey cannot take a positive step towards Armenia unless Armenia withdraws from Azerbaijani land [...] if that issue is solved our people and our parliament will have a more positive attitude towards this protocol and this process." Erdogan also stated that "We will bring the protocol to parliament but parliament has to see the conditions between Azerbaijan and Armenia to decide whether this protocol can be implemented." Yet according to Alexander Iskandaryan, director of the Caucasus Media Institute in Yerevan, he makes it clear that "The Turkish side needs to play to its domestic audience. Erdogan and other political figures have made such statements often enough [...] It's a fact that neither the word Karabakh nor Azerbaijan appears in the documents that were signed." Nalbandian also commented in January 2010 that "If Turkey takes a step back, then this will be not only a violation of the agreements with Armenia but will demonstrate that it is not respecting the international community's opinion, with all resulting consequences and the loss of credibility in the first instance." He continued by stating that "Armenia, on the other hand, will -- let's not say win -- not lose anything that we had before this process." Therefore, outside nations need to put more pressure on Turkey in order for "a new chapter" to begin between Armenia and Turkey. The Nagorno-Karabakh issue is indeed serious, however, this dispute is between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the people of Nagorno-Karabakh. Also, the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis must be resolved by all the parties involved and by both regional and global institutions which have a vested interest in solving this complex problem. However, the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis is a separate issue and Turkey can't claim otherwise because this issue was outside the signed agreement between Armenia and Turkey. The genocide of Armenians and other Christians in 1915 is an historical fact and the same applies to massacres which took place before and after this date. Turkey can never erase this history, however, this nation can start "a fresh chapter" which is based on sincerity and genuine friendship with Armenia. Therefore, do the leaders of Turkey desire friendship and honesty or is nationalism too embedded within the mindset of the political elites of this nation? My link

Dear friends, The exhibition is open in Paris now. We should bring him here!! here are the fliers My link here are some images My link Sireli Yeghpayrs – Sevgili Kardesim – My Dear Brother Orlando Carlo Calumeno Koleksiyonundan Kartpostallarla 100 Yil Once Turkiyede Ermeniler Sergisi Paris, 28 Ocak – 2 Mart 2010 Exhibition: Armenians in Turkey 100 Years Ago With the Postcards from the Collection of Orlando Carlo Calumeno Paris, 28 January – 2 March 2010 bir Osman Koker ve Birzamanlar Yayincilik sergisi an exhibition by Osman Koker and Birzamanlar Yayincilik