Book by Prof. Dadrian on the Armenian
Genocide Launched in Greece
Athens. November 18, 2002 - The Greek version of Prof. Vahakn Dadrian's History of the Armenian Genocide was launched here with a weeklong series of lectures and panel discussions. The book, which has just been released by the noted Greek academic publishing house Stochastis, details one of the worst human rights abuses in Turkish history. The book appears coincidentally with the Greek Parliament's deliberations on the just submitted UN proposal to resolve the Cyprus conflict between Greece and Turkey.
The
participation of a large number of Greek historians, political scientists,
international law experts, as well as journalists, former Foreign
Ministers, and parliamentarians, including His Excellency Apostolos
Kaklamanis, a venerable Greek statesman and currently the president of the
Parliament of Greece, indicate the poignancy of the Armenian Genocide for
Greeks. During the period 1915-1923, the Ottoman and Turkish authorities
instituted policies that resulted in the dislocation and death not only of
millions of Armenians, but countless Greeks as well, especially from the
Pontus area, and the city of Smyrna in 1922.
At
the first lecture, after introductory remarks by Lucas Akselov, the
publisher, Ms. Fani Petralia, who is also the vice president of the Union
of Greek Journalists, conveyed to the audience the greetings of Aristidis
Manolakos, that Union's president. There followed a number of speakers who
commented on, described, analyzed, and praised the merits of Dadrian's
in-depth study: Grigoris Niotis, former deputy Foreign Minister and
currently member of the Parliament; Fotis Kouvelis, former Cabinet
Minister, and currently member of the Parliament; and Vasilis Moulopulos
editor of Vima, a Greek morning paper. Finally Prof. Dadrian came to the
podium, outlining the essentials of the book and describing his objectives
in writing it.
"The
influence of Franz Werfel's The Forty Days of Musa Dagh had an abiding
effect on me in my youth. The ideas of human piety in times of great
stress, and heroism against overwhelming odds, on the one hand, in
contrast with incredible human cruelty and the indifference of the world
to it, on the other, moved me to study the victimization of vulnerable
peoples by powerful perpetrators," said Dadrian. "I am very
happy that my work is now available to the Greek reader, as Greeks and
Armenians have a great deal of history in common," he continued.
The
second lecture of the series took place at the large Sakis Karayorgas
auditorium of Pantheon University of Athens before an audience consisting
of several hundred Greek students and faculty, and local Armenians. Ms.
Kira Adam, the political analyst for the Greek newspaper "Elefterotipia,"
who chaired the session, introduced the panellists who offered their views
about the historical significance of the Armenian Genocide and the ominous
portents of the denial of that crime by the Turks. The inability of Turkey
to confront the Armenian Genocide is symptomatic of its inability to deal
openly and honestly about other critical issues facing Turkish society
today, including its poor record on human rights. This is an important
factor as Turkey seeks to become a member of the European Union. The
panellists included Ms. Nasa Patapiu, the president of the House of Cyprus
in Athens, who conveyed the greetings of Bishop Nikiforos, the chief monk
of the historical Cyprus monastery of Kikouc; Theodoros Pangalos, former
Foreign Minister and currently, a member of Parliament; Prof. Stelios
Perakis, Dept of International Relations, Pantheon University; Prof Yagos
Andreadis, chairman of the Department of Communications and Political
Science of Pantheon University, who on this occasion publicly revealed
that he is half-Armenian; Prof. Marios Evriviadis, School of International
Law, Pantheon University; and Prof. Christodulos Yalouridis, Dept. of
European Studies International Relations.
Most
forceful in denouncing the crime of genocide and the perpetrators, along
with denouncing the stubborn denial of that crime, were former Foreign
Minister Pangalos and Prof. Evriviadis. Pangalos openly declared that
today's Turkey is the continuation of the Ottoman Empire, thereby implying
that as a successor regime, according to the principles of International
Law, it is responsible for the consequences of the Armenian Genocide.
The
last speaker was Prof. Dadrian, who sketched the evolution of
international law relative to the crime of genocide. He explained in
detail the broad interconnections between the specifics of the Armenian
Genocide and the eventual crystallization of the Nuremberg Doctrine and
its sequela, the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crime of Genocide.
Additional
participants in both sessions were His Excellency Levon Migirditchian,
Minister of Education and Science, Republic of Armenia; Serko Aghabadian,
the translator of the book; and Ms. Araksi Apelian a highly competent
professional interpreter. In Athens and Saloniki, she interpreted
Dadrian's discourse from English into Greek, paragraph by paragraph. At
the second session in Pantheon University, the translations were
simultaneous through the use of ear-phones, involving Dadrian's English
and Minister Migirditchian's Armenian. Additionally in attendance at the
two sessions in Athens were his Eminence Archbishop Sahag Aivazian, the
Primate; His Excellence Vahram Gajoyan, Armenia's ambassador to Greece;
the personnel of the embassy, and several leaders of a variety of
organizations associated with the ARF, whose Hai Tad organization was
instrumental in organizing the entire series.
The
last of the series took place in Saloniki under the chairmanship of Prof.
Ioannis Hassiotis, professor of Modern European History at Aristotle
University in Saloniki, who wrote a pungent preface to the Greek edition
of the book. In a lengthy speech he underlined the critical aspects of
Dadrian's treatise to an overflow audience headed by the Honorable Sotiris
Kouvelas, former Cabinet Minister and currently member of the Greek
Parliament. Prior to his lecture, Prof. Dadrian was interviewed live for
half an hour by Saloniki's TV-100 television station. Likewise, a reporter
from "Angelioforis," Saloniki's largest daily newspaper, which
ran that interview in its special weekend edition, interviewed him at
length. Ms. Apelian translated both interviews into Greek.
In
Athens, Prof. Dadrian, along with Minister L. Migirditchian, was interviewed for nearly three hours by the celebrated Greek
newscaster Danag Stratigaki
for E.R.T/ Radical TV, which has a worldwide special outlet for both radio
and television. Although available for only a short time, the first run of
this 760-page book is nearly sold out.