CBC’de Nil Koksal’in duzenledigi, Demir Delen ve Vahan Kololian’in konuk olarak katildigi program uzerine.
Saygilarimla,
yildiriminanc [inanc_yildirim@hotmail.com]
D I A S P O R A D I G E S T :
M O S A I C C H A I R M A N U R G E S
A R M E N I A N S A N D T U R K S
T O N O R M A L I Z E R E L A T I O N S
April 24 is the date each year
that Armenians around the world
hold “Genocide Remembrance
Day”, a day to mark the anniversary
of the date in 1915 on
which the mass arrests, deportations,
and killings of Armenians
by the Ottomans began. Those
killings would go on to become
widely recognized – except by
those who steadfastly refuse to
do so – as the first genocide of
the modern era.
2010 marks the 95th anniversary
of the tragic and stilldisputed
set of events that continue
to divide Armenians from
Turks, and that continue to contribute
to the uncertainty, instability
and economic deprivation
of that corner of the Caucasus.
This year, on Saturday, April 24,
Mosaic’s Chairman Vahan Kololian
was invited to be interviewed
by Nil Koksal of the CBC
News Network about the current
status of the relationship between
Turks and Armenians both here in Canada, and in
their home region. Vahan was
joined in the segment by Demir
Delen, former President of the
Federation of Canadian Turkish
Associations.
Throughout the segment,
Kololian stressed the importance
of encouraging dialogue
and openness between Armenians
and Turks, both in Canada
and abroad. Invoking Lester
Pearson’s rhetorical question,
“How can there be peace without
people understanding each
another, and how can this be
unless they know each other?”,
he emphasized the importance
of breaking down the “silos”
that too often separate even
the youngest members of ethnocultural
communities in Canada
whose homelands are still
in conflict. Rather than
“(allowing) historical issues to
be a dividing point,” he
stressed the value of coming
together as Canadians to jointly
urge the opening of the Turkish-
Armenian border, without conditions,
as a first step towards
normalizing relations between
the traditional adversaries. As
he pointed out, “many countries
have disputes but…still have
diplomatic relations,” and urged
that same path for Armenia and
Turkey.
Since its founding, the Mosaic
Institute has been engaged with
the dispute between Armenia
and Turkey. It hosted dialogue
sessions in 2008 for members
of both communities, diplomats
from both countries, and officials
from the Government of
Canada. Participants found the
sessions to be constructive, and
even the governments in Ankara
and Yerevan appeared to take
note. The protocols they
adopted in October 2009 – now
put on hold by the two countries’
parliaments – advocated the
same basic approach: normalize
diplomatic relations, open the
border to the free flow of goods,
services and people, and, over
time, work towards a shared
understanding of the tragic past
shared by all Armenians and
Turks.
With the protocols now stalled,
the Mosaic Institute is exploring
new ways in which Canadians
with an interest in the region
might be able to help break the
impasse.
==========================
FROM: MEHGMET BOR
mehmetbor@hotmail.com
TF danışma Kurulu Uyesı ve Kanada Turk Federasyonu II. Bşk.
Bu Mosaic Enstitusu toplantilardan birine gecmiste ben de diger bir kac Turk arkadaslarla birlikte katilmistim (sanirim Demir, Inanc ve Nedim beyler de oradaydi). Plan hep ayni: Ermenistani ekonomik ablukadan kurtarma cabasina Turk diasporasini da katmak. Eger Azerbaycan ogesi olmasaydi, tek tarafli sinirlari acmak belki Dasnaklarin Ermenistandaki direncini kirmak icin farkli ve muhtemelen etkin bir yontem olarak denenebilirdi. Ancak, bir milyon Azerbaycan Turku yurtlarindan surulmus olarak cadirlarda yasarken ve topraklarini 20%’si isgal altindayken Ermenistanla kosulsuz baris yapmak Turkiyeye Azerbaycan’in (ve dolayli olarakta diger Turkic soydaslarin) guvenini ve dostlugunu kaybetmeyi garanti eder. Turkiyede boyle bir risk’i alabilecek bir hukumet en azindan bu gunlerde cikamaz sanirim.
Ayrica, Turkiye son defasinda benzer bir sureci ABD ve AB baskisi ve (muhtemelen ustu ortulu) bazi vaatleriyle baslattiginda, Ermenistan ve diasporalari bu isin en cok kimin cikarina oldugunu ve kendilerinin israriyla baslatildigini unutup, simarark, sanki aslinda bu sinir acma projesinde en cok Turkiye ricaciymis havasi yaratinca, ve bu carpik anlayis/algilamaya kapilip bildigimiz “soykirim” dayatmalarini daha tavizsiz ve israrci bir sekilde yaymaya kalkinca, Turkiye yaptigi ahmakligin farkina varip “israrindan(!)” vazgecti. Kisa bir saskinlik/sok’tan sonra Ermeni diasporasi ve Ermenistan yaptigi aymazligi/ahmakligi anlayip tekrar ayni eski hile’yi isitip onumuze yeniden koymaya calisiyor. Yani, “aquare one again”.
Turkiyenin, Israil konusundaki davranisi sonrasi yaratilan guvensizlik nedeniyle bati destegini gozden cikardigi su gunlerde bu tur “siplomatik” cinfikirlikler fazla ragbet gormez saniyorum. Yinede, Kanadada, hic degilse Turk ve Ermeni diasporalari arasinda dialogu surdurmek acisindan, dostlar alis veriste gorsun hesabi bu tur toplantilara gidip sohbetlere katimanin bizim acimizdan bir sakincasi yok tabiiki.
Ancak, Ermeni tarafi samimi olarak adil bir cozumun kendileri acisindan geregini kavrayincaya kadar Ermeni toplumu ile bu tur dialoglardan dise dokunur sonuclar beklemek gercekci olamaz bence. Unutmayalim, aramizdaki (sozde soykirim en basta olmak uzere) tum konularin uluslarasi platformlarda ve ikili duzeyde tartisilmasinda israr eden hep Turk tarafi, kacan taraf ise Ermeni tarafidir.
Bu resimde bir terslik/celiski ve ciddiyet eksikligi gorulmuyor mu? Resmen tanimaktan kacindigin bir sinirin acilmasini istemek insani enayi yerine koymak degilde nedir? Evet, Yunanistanla sorunlarimiza ragmen karsilikli sinirlarimiz acik, ancak Yunanistanin ve Turkiyenin karsilikli tanidigi bir ortak sinir var, acik olan sinir odur. Ermanistan ile hangi siniri acmaktan bahsediyoruz burada?
Ataturk gibi bir dehayi yaratan Turk ulusu ve devlet gelenegi bu tur sig diplomasi oyunlarini bosa cikaracak yeteneklere elbetteki sahiptir. Hukumetlerin biri gider digeri gelir, ancak bu gercek fazla degismez. Bundan kimsenin suphesi olmasin.
M.Bor
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kanada turk federasyonunu tanıtıyoruz
Federation Assignments
Executive Committee:
| President | Nedim DUZENLI | |
| Vice President – External Relations | Dr. Mehmet BOR | |
| Vice President – Community Relations | Ismail VATANER | |
| Treasurer | Huseyin NURGEL, P.Eng. | |
| Secretary | Inanc YILDIRIM | |
| Director | Kenan BEKTAS | |
| Director | Nuriye NAZARI |
Reserve Committee :
| Member | Filiz TUMER |
Audit Committee :
| Member | Veysel KAYBAKI | |
| Member | Yavuz ANADOL | |
| Member | Mehmet Ali YAGIZ |
Honour Council :
| Member | Ibrahim CINTOSUN, LLB, MD | |
| Member | Dr. Tuna BASKOY | |
| Member | Yalcin DIKER |