OPEN LETTER REGARDING AN INTERVIEW
OF HIS HOLINESS PATRIARH KIRILL on January 7, 2016
Prevent mistakes not to lead to a tension
This document is from the independent group of Armenians in Sankt Petersburg.
The original Russian version (16 Word pages) has been placed at the web site -
https://sites.google.com/site/stopturkey2015/vote1/obrasenie-13-yanvara-2016
Russian text as well as web page have links to the sources.
Our apologies for the mistakes from translation in the English version.
Your Eminence Metropolitan Varsonofy!
No one is without sin and without mistakes. We do consider an impermissible error the sayings of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill in his Christmas interview with Dmitry Kiselev January 7, 2016 regarding, say, a rather tolerant attitude towards Christians in the Ottoman Empire, without any incidents, and it is said — right after commemorating the 100th anniversary of the peak of the Armenian Genocide!
Also we consider insufficient an explanation by the press secretary of the Patriarch, priest Alexander Volkov on January 11. The statements of the Patriarch and the negative reaction of the Armenian community in Armenia and around the world have highlighted a number of important issues, a small part of which is reflected in the Attachment to this Letter.
The historical Russian-Armenian spiritual, cultural, and even today a strategic relationship represent a great value that all of us together, Russians and Armenians have to protect, to develop, in order to pass them to the future generations. Unfortunately, due to a number of mistakes in the past, Russia's relations with many friendly Christian countries have been soured. And every time, alas, there was an accumulation of "accidental mistakes" along with an incorrect assessment of historical, as well as of the current rapidly changing reality. We are against such fate to be happen to the relations with Armenia, which remains one of the just few real strategic allies for Russia.
His Holiness Patriarch of the Russian Church which is sisterly to Armenian Apostolic Church — certainly is the high authority, his activities and opinions have always a high value. However, in his speech, His Holiness Patriarch touched also the political, historical, civil issues of the Memory of 1.5 million Martyrs of Armenian Apostolic Church, the Memory of many millions of Christians, a topic that today is bleeding in our hearts, in the hearts of all Christians, therefore we turn to the proposal and explanations, which would not allow ourselves to do if it was only the issue of pure theology or religion.
Your Eminence,
Media in Armenia and in Armenian Diaspora in the world these days are full of protests about unacceptability of distortion and misrepresentation of the reality and Truth. Our appeal is a kind call for the timely informal dialogue. We hope that it will be perceived by no means in a formal way. We know about the attempts of certain forces on any occasion to undermine Russian-Armenian fraternal ties and we are strongly against any raising of tension. We are for a frank and benevolent dialogue, we speak not about usual official inter-church dialogue, in which we have no right to interfere, but anyway we speak about the dialogue for timely smoothing of the growing negativity of the questions.
We offer to organize in St. Petersburg a quiet conversation, a round table to exchange views between the representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and ones from our group. We are convinced that it is essential and it would be benefit of us all. Experience shows that only formal contacts is not enough!
With deep respect and hope for understanding,
The group of public representatives from different cities (names and Attachment are below)
Contacts:
e-mail bvagan@mail.ru
Page on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/ArmPeterburg
St. Petersburg
January 13, 2016
- in the 1665th anniversary of Avarayr battle - the first war in the history for the protection of the Christian world by first Christian country Armenia - headed by Sparapet (commander) St. Vartan Mamikonyan (son of Saakanush, the daughter of the Armenian Catholicos Sahak Partev, a descendant of the St. Gregory the Illuminator)
- in the 138th anniversary of the occupation of Adrianople (01.20.1878) by Russian army with an open way to Constantinople
- in the 133rd anniversary (January 1883) of the first political arrest in Turkey of the Armenian members of the patriotic organization "Pashtpan Hayrenyats" (Homeland Protection)
- in the 101rd anniversary of the peak of the Armenian Genocide (is been commemorated in the International Day of Remembrance on April 24 but even in these days on January 1915 there were massacres by Turks and Kurds of Armenian and Assyrian refugees traveling from Urmia, Salmast and other locations to New Djuga, on January 12, 1915 only in one small village Avharik 107 Armenians were killed)
- in the 96th anniversary (01.20.1920) the date of fraudulent declarative condemnation by Mustafa Kemal of the Young Turks in Constantinople (at a meeting of the Military Tribunal), torturers were condemned in absentia, but later the cynical Turkish authorities justified these subman
- in the 26th anniversary (1990) of the beginning of Armenian massacres in Baku (Azerbaijan) - the third Armenian massacre since 1905
- in the 26th anniversary (1990, at 29 years) of a death in battle of the Armenian National Hero Movses Gorgisyan, in victorious and liberation Artsakh war in the defense of the Christian world from non-humans
- in the 9th anniversary (01.19.2007) the brutal murder of famous journalist of Armenian origin Hrant Dink by non-humans at the center of Istanbul.
The interview of Patriarh with the words, whitewashing an age-old genocidal policy of Turkey, took place two weeks later, and 2 days before another new for years anti-Christian deadly shots by non-humans, the descendants and followers of the executioners of the Armenian Genocide in the two Turkish states – Turkey and Azerbaijan. These fatal shots were made at the young soldiers of the Defense Army of the Republic Artsakh (NKR) by the order of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, who was earlier awarded by Russian Patriarh with a high Christian Medal.
On December 25, 2015 (+ 13.00 RIP) 18-year-old Karen Misakovich Akulyan and on January 9, 2016 (+ 21:30 RIP) 19-year-old Aramais Yurikovich Voskanyan died at the battle station, while continuing to serve the 1714-year-old Protection of Armenia and Christendom. And during these pre- and Christmas days in one office of the capital of Armenia's strategic ally Russia one people were refining plans for next immoral and ungodly supplies of modern weapons for the next 30 pieces of silver to the racist and genocidal state, Azerbaijan against Armenia and the Christian world, and at the same time in another office in Moscow a new regular information backstabbing to Armenia and the Christian world were produced.
As on January 22, 2016 this Open Letter was personally (besides likes on Facebook and other social networks) supported by
13 NGOs, media and social groups in the networks
and also 231 persons, in that number
24 from Sankt Petersburg
37 from Moscow
46 from Armenia
99 from USA and Canada
18 from other cities/countries.
An Attachment to the Open Letter is on 15 pages.
Full Russian version with a List of signatories is at https://sites.google.com/site/stopturkey2015/vote1/obrasenie-13-yanvara-2016
Here are few of the topics, that are underlined and criticized in the text.
Paragraph 1 – Meanings of the words
1. Detailed analysis of the sayings in the video prove that they were not accidental.
2. Samples of wrong words and phrases that are circulated in Russia re Armenian Genocide
3. Critical analysis of “genocide” definition. Differences from Holocoast.
4. There was another Armenian Genocide in Azerbaijan – not just the pogroms. Only in city of Baku massacres held by Turks were 3 times since 1905. A notion of “white genocide”.
Paragraph 2 – The atmosphere of hushing the Truth and of half-truth
5. The theme of Armenian Genocide (AG) should be out of politics. It is not a subject of politics to play with. It is an existential subject for Armenian nation.
6. Unfortunately the Truth regarding AG is a subject of manipulations. This should be stopped.
7. From one side State Duma 20 years ago unanimously adopted a Statement regarding AG, but AG is out of the textbooks in the schools, there is no Memorable days in Russia or in the cities, people do not know more than it just happened.
8. Russian leaders avoid to say a word Turkey when talking about AG.
Paragraph 3 – Examples of half-truth, of pro-Turkish politics in Russia
9. An atmosphere in Russia of hushing the Truth and of half-truth regarding AG formed since Soviet time often leads to the insulting mistakes of Russian authorities to Armenia, Armenians, Christendom and Truth.
10. Russian authorities in Sankt Petersburg due to illegal Turkish lobbying rejected a Bill for acknowledging April 24 as a Memorable day in the city.
11. Russian authorities do supply with modern lethal weapons to genocidal and racist authorities of Azerbaijan against Armenia for billions of dollars.
12. AG is not mentioned in school textbooks in Russia.
13. President Putin spoke on April 24, 2015 in Yerevan, but have’t name Turkey.
14. Russians don’t mention that one of the conditions of acceptance of Christianity 1000 years ago was a demand of Byzantine Emperor to Russian tsar Vladimir to accept a Christian faith of Vladimir’s bride Armenian Ann, who was a sister of the Emperor.
15. There is no monument to Armenian general in Sankt Petersburg though there were more than 170 Armenian generals who served or lived in Sankt Petersburg. Azeris had no even one general during WWII, however Russian authorities allowed to install in a city a 4 meter monument for the only one Azeri general during Tsar times.
16. Russian authorities in Sankt Petersburg had forbid to a note about AG under a new monument of Vardapet Komitas in a city.
17. There is a hidden rule in Russia not to allow AG monument in the public places. May be Russia remains the only large Christian country in the world with no AG monument in dignified public place.
18. Nowhere in Russia April 24 is a legal memorable day though the famous Statement of Duma (parliament) in 1995 says that this day should be acknowledged as a memorable in Russia. Unlike presidents of US no one president of Russia ever applied to the nation regarding AG (though percentage of Armenians in Russia is in times larger than in US).
19. Russia has a taboo on theme of Armenian Genocide in Azerbaijan, despite that it is a founder of the international Islamic terrorism.
20. Earlier in 2010 Patriarh Kirill had awarded with top Christian medals such aiders of the terrorism as the Mufti of Azerbaijan Pashazade and Hidayat Orudjev, who had a direct participation in Sumgayit massacres. Patriarh awarded also Ilham Aliev, a president of Azerbaijan who for many days is ordering to make hundreds shots at Armenia and Artsakh. Every such shot is a shot to the Christendom. Patriarh made his award right at April 24, 2010. Is that evident? How long Armenians can keep silence for such a behavior?
21. Russian authority never speak about Christian cemeteries that were destroyed in Azerbaijan and many other vandal facts, falsification at the state level, relations with IS, and genocidal policy.
22. Father A. Volkov (press secretary of Patriarh) in his comment stated that Russia acknowledges AG and supports this position on international level. But how Russian authorities can support AG outside if inside the country for a whole century the policy and atmospohere f hushing the Truth and of half-truth has been continuing?
Paragraph 4 – Finally, were there in Turkey the exterminations of Christian majority that through years of “white genocide” became a less than 1% minority?
23. At the end of XIX century there were killed 300 thousands Armenians.
24. After 1914 Turks killed 1,5 million Armenians, 800 thousands Greeks, 600 thousands Assyrians, 200 thousands Russian Molokans.
25. That is only a blood phases of Genocide. In fact the AG in it different forms was during 10 centuries.
26. Turks were killing Armenians in that number because of their support of Christian Russia.
27. One of the members of local Parliament in Sankt Petersburg V. Milonov named Turkey a facist state.
28. Some people think that a commemoration of 100th anniversary of AG had already passed and a question is closed. That is an absolute false. For each real Armenian every Divine day, every single day is April 24 and of red color of ancestor’s blood that never ever will become dry in the Saint Memory.
29. When we speak about Turkish crimes there is no issue of a war between Islam and Christianity. The state policy of Turkey always was against Christianity, but at the same time it was not pro-Islam. Murderers and executioners, liers and falsifiers can’t have any faith, other than faith of crime.
30. The problem is in civilization incompatibility of Turkish genocidal policy (in many forms) with the human values.
31. How many times Russia has to step on Turkish rakes? How long?
Paragraph 5 – Dmitry Kiselyev
32. D. Kiselyev, who held an interview on January 7 with Patriarh Kirill is not an average journalist. He is a top person in charge of policy on Federal “Russia 1” TV. Apart of Patriarh’s two sayings regarding Turkey Kiselyev permitted to air without taking off the sayings during edition process.
33. Some Russian sources qualified this acts of Kiselyev as a provocation.
34. It is unacceptable such act of Kiselyev. He has to beg pardon to Armenians from his personal side for sure.
35. Kiselyev can’t ignore the historical facts of how devoted Armenians were to Russia through centuries. He can’t ignore that right Armenia is may be remains the only REAL ALLY of Russia at the time when Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey are continuing their destructive policies and acts against Russia.
36. After the resurrection from Turkish Calvary Armenia saved Russia from the destruction at South. Russia was saved also due to Armenian Army with its Victorious Soldier and a victory in Artsakh war. Armenian soldier has a blood of generalissimo Suvorov-Manukian, of Russian vice-emperor Loris-Melikov, of ten marshals, including Eprem-han Davtyan (a Supreme commander of Persian Army in the beginning of XX century), a blood of hundreds of generals. In Armenian victory the main were a Spirit and a sense of a Divine Justice.
Conclusion
We, the authors of the Open Letter, are non-partisan independent group of activists in Sankt Petersburg. We apply from our own, not on behalf of any political group or of so called “Armenian autonomy”.
For years we work on the issues related to the subject of this document.
In 2014 we were the unique representatives of national communities in Sankt Petersbuth who participated in the patriotic action “Immortal regiment” and called on other communities to follow us.
On December 5, 2015 we had organized in the center of Petersburg a Rally against Turkish policies of state terrorism and genocide
https://www.facebook.com/groups/489439847744721/permalink/1057486254273408/
On December 21, 2015 we had organized a Round table regarding terrorism with the representatives of different NGOs.
We ask to organize a meeting with a representative of Russian Orthodox Church. Non formal contacts and meetings are very important today, because the absence of such discussions brought to the negative point.
For a long time in Russia there is a policy and atmosphere of hushing the truth, of half-truth, of truth imitation regarding Armenin Genocide in two racist and genocidal Turkish countries.
How come someone can sacrifice a Divine truth for momentary purposes – economic, political “interests”? How long such ungodly policy and atmosphere will continue in Russia?
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Asbarez Newspaper, January 11, 2016