Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial Committee Issues Statement on Board

PAGE 4, THE CALIFORNIA COURIER, OCTOBER 30, 2014 Publisher’s Views Pasadena Armenian Genocide Memorial Committee Issues Statement on Board PASADENA, CA - The Pasa- control what the prior chairman this memorial to honor our ances- Strangely, Turkey did not Publicize dena Armenian Genocide Me- says, his saying them does not tors who perished as well as our morial Committee has issued a make them true. His actions both ancestors who survived, rebuilt Correcting Signpost of Armenian Church statement on the inner workings prior to and since his resignation their lives and their families, and By Harut Sassounian of the board. Below is the full were hurtful to the project and not contributed greatly to the success statement. in keeping with legal ethics. of this nation and this community. “The PAGMC is pleased to an- “The board has reviewed the al- “We welcome the Law Offices nounce that the law firm of Gera- legations made by the prior chair of Geragos of Geragos & Geragos I just learned that the Turkish government has quietly corrected the gos and Geragos has agreed to in detail and consulted with both with open arms to the committee signpost near the historic Holy Cross Church (Sourp Khach) on Akhta- serve as legal counsel to the com- our CPA and the Community and are confident with the assis- mar Island in Lake Van, by indicating its “Armenian” origin. mittee as we navigate our way to Foundation. We have been as- tance of this nationally renowned For decades, Turkish authorities systematically concealed the true the construction and completion sured by both entities that our IRS law firm we can continue to pro- identity of thousands of Armenian churches and monuments so no one phase of the Memorial Project. non-profit status is current and se- mote issues near and dear to the would remember that Armenians lived for thousands of years in lands Within the weeks ahead, we will cure and that there are no finan- Armenian community.” presently occupied by the Republic of Turkey. By not disclosing the be making some exciting an- cial irregularities with respect to traces of Armenian civilization, Turkish officials calculated that there nouncements concerning the ad- funds that have been collected. As dition of board members to be is prudent under new leadership, would be no need to explain the disappearance of Armenians -- an- Letters to even more inclusive of the broad- a careful and thorough review of other manifestation of Turkish denialism. er community. the finances and practices of the Back in 2007, the Turkish government held an elaborate opening cer- “On September 29 of this year, Pasadena Armenian Genocide The Editor emony after renovating the 10th Century Holy Cross Church. While Mr. William Paparian publicly re- Memorial was conducted. Upon Dear Sir: some Armenians naively participated in this Turkish propaganda exer- signed from the Board of Direc- completion of the review, there Am I entitled to know the origi- cise, I wrote several critical editorials tors of the Pasadena Armenian were no discrepancies with re- nal last names of my paternal and Genocide Memorial Committee. spect to any funds that have been pointing out that Turkish officials did maternal great-grandparents? The Board immediately and unan- collected, either in terms of the not permit Armenian church services The Genocide of 1915 abruptly imously accepted his resignation. manner or the amount. All monies (except once a year), and refused to uprooted the Armenian people In his public announcement of collected have been either prop- allow a cross displayed on its dome. from their ancestral homeland resignation, he made a number erly deposited with the Commu- and effectively wiped out all Instead, the Sourp Khach Church was of allegations that attempted to nity Foundation of the Verdugos traces of their identity. From Ani officially designated as a museum and call into question both the judg- or properly expended to move us to Van, from Erzurum (Garin) to placed under the administration of the ment and fiduciary responsibil- toward a successful outcome. Sivas (Sepastia), churches, mon- Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tour- ity of other board members. He “Our IRS and state reporting asteries, schools, cultural centers, made these allegations through a requirements are handled by our ism, and not under the jurisdiction of businesses, and ancestral homes series of public statements with- CPA and are current. the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul. were demolished, culture was out bringing these matters to the “Our board is also developing Since then, a cross has been placed on repressed and the freedom to re- attention of the board. Indeed, a new set of processes that depart the Church dome. member what had happened was the board had expressed concerns from the practices under our prior cruelly denied -- as if to prove One issue that I failed to mention about certain actions he had un- chair to maximize accountability Armenians never existed in their back in 2007 was the inscription on the signpost leading to the Church. dertaken, without board authori- for our supporters and donors. ancestral lands. The original signpost made any reference to Armenians neither in zation, in the recent past. Although not legally required, the Orphaned children who were English nor in Turkish. Below is the heading and first words of the “Given the nature of this board recent unfortunate developments absorbed into Turkish and Kurd- and its purpose, the maintenance are moving us to take steps to en- previous inscription, written in English: ish families were deprived of of our integrity is of the utmost sure that there can be no question “Akdamar Island & Monumental Museum. Fee 5 TL [Turkish Liras]. their names and heritage, and importance. To that end, a group that this board takes its fiduciary Akdamar Island and Church. Akdamar Church was built by the monks dispossessed of all connections to of board members were preparing responsibilities very seriously. of architects Manuel between 915-921 by the order of Vaspurakan their former lives. to discuss a significant change “We are currently approaching The Armenian Genocide, in ad- King Gagik I….” with respect to the chairmanship 50% of our target goal of $400,000 dition to incalculable losses, has Last week, during a chance encounter in a Glendale Armenian book- of the board when Mr. Paparian to pay for the construction of the snatched from us our ancestral store, Senem Cevik, Assistant Professor at Ankara University, showed abruptly resigned. The manner of memorial and the funding of an surnames, a truly integral part of me two different photos of the Holy Cross Church signpost. The first, his resignation was a shock to the endowment to secure funds for our being. Thus, so many Arme- other board members and to some the maintenance of the memo- taken by her a year ago, showed the foregoing inscription. The second, nians in the Diaspora no longer supporters of the memorial who rial in the years ahead. We are on taken by one of her colleagues last month, displayed the new inscrip- carry their original names, en- have asked for an explanation of track to be fully funded within tion that refers to the building as an Armenian Church: compassing instead a first name, his charges. the next six months. The outpour- “Akhdamar Armenian Church of the Holy Cross. The Church was a location or birthplace, a profes- “After a thorough review by the ing of support from the commu- sion or trade, or specific charac- built by monk/architect Manuel between 915 and 921, by the order of board, it is clear that the allega- nity for this project, especially in teristic that was Turkish in origin. Gagik I, King of Vaspurakan. Built at the form of a four-leaf clover tions made by Mr. Paparian repre- the aftermath of the inexplicable There can be no excuse to such and under the plan of a cruciform, the church was covered by a dome sent, at best, a gross distortion of and unsettling events of the past an act of blotting out one's mem- from inside and by a pyramidal cone from outside. The church has the facts and, at worst, a concert- few weeks has been heartwarm- ory and identity and withhold- ed campaign to mislead the com- ing. This board is determined to two gates, one at the southern and another at the western side. During ing them from the very ability to munity. While the Board cannot never forget that the purpose of subsequent periods, the Chapel of Zacharias I, a jamatun and a bell learn about one's roots. tower were added to the church and the Chapel of Saint Stephanos After the Genocide, these are was built separately. Built in the name of the Holy Cross, the church P.R. value of publicizing the change. simple rights all Armenians are has been transformed into a monastery in 1131. On the stone reliefs of -- Reluctance of high-ranking officials to draw attention to the entitled to. the façade of the church, religious scenes taken from the Old and New change, fearing that they would appear ridiculous taking credit for In light of this, I would like to appeal to the United States Con- Testament, palace life, hunting scenes as well as human and animal something so obvious that should have been done long time ago. gress to use its influence with the figures are depicted. These depictions are important as they distinguish -- Concerns by Turkish officials that making public the revised text Turkish authorities and help make the church from similar ones. There are various wall paintings rep- would impress the outside world, while triggering criticism at home available the state's full resources resenting descriptions taken from the Bible on the inner side of the for catering to Armenians.

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