Armenian Genocide

About The Genocide

Mets Yeghern
Before 1908-ies
In 1877 one of the regular Russian-Turkish wars started, as a result of which the Treaty of San-Stefano was signed. According to that Treaty the Vilayet (Province) of Kars populated by Armenians was to be ceded to Russia, and Turkey was to undertake economic reforms in its areas populated by Armenians. This was a great option for Armenians. However, the West European Countries, troubled by the success of Russia, initiated another negotiation between the conflicting parties, this time in Berlin. There the implementation of reforms in Armenia was exclusively assigned to Turkey only. Instead the Armenian cause ("Haykakan Harts" in Armenian) emerged. The Armenian Issue implied that the European countries would provide assistance to Armenians and thus improve their situation. However, as time showed, it had the contrary outcome. The European diplomacy started to use the Armenian issue as a means for suppressing Turkey. And the Turkish Government adopted a new way of struggle…
They chose the most inhumane and barbaric way for settling the Armenian Issue: the complete extermination of the Armenian people from the earth. For that purpose gangs called “hamidie” were established who were assigned to attack and raid the Armenian vilayets. The Armenian-hunting policy was strengthened and intensified. Sultan Abdul Hamid II became the immediate implementer of this policy. In 1895-1896 at his own initiative the first mass carnages of Armenians were started. They were then extended to many towns and villages of the Turkish Armenia. Some 300 000 Armenians were slaughtered in the massacre.
Clifford Lloyd, The Consul of UK in Erzrum has told on those events: “The Armenian citizens of the Sultan were literally without any protection, as a herd of sheep surrounded by wolfs.”
The Years 1908-1914
In 1908 the Young Turks seized power in a coup d'etat, which was supported by the Armenian parties as well. However, by that time the ideology of panturkism was being rooted in the Turkish policy. It was about unification of all Turkish speaking nations into one state and annihilation of all those nations that were in- between or on their way.
From April 1 to April 14 of 1909 the first mass destruction of Armenians was carried out by Young Turks in the Vilayet of Adana and some 30 000 Armenians were slaughtered.
Following the massacre in Adana, the destructions of Armenians became more intense. In October of 1911 the Young Turks convened a meeting where a decision was adopted on Ottomanization of all the citizens of Turkey (which they claimed should be achieved sooner or later) and it was clear that it cannot be achieved through peaceful means, therefore it was to be enforced by arms. Thus the entire Ottoman Empire was getting ready to deliver the final and last blow to Armenians. Talaat Pasha, Enver Pasha, Jemal Pasha and Behaeddin Shakir Bay and others became in charge of annihilation of Armenians.
The Years of 1915-1916
Those in charge of the Young Turk Party decided to carry out the extermination in three phases.
During the first phase, all the Armenian males of 15-45 ages were recruited to Army; they were disarmed and then killed in separate groups of 50-100. The few arms and little ammunition that the Armenians possessed were also taken away.
The second phase was the slaughter of Armenian political, intellectual, cultural and military leaders. On April 24, 1915, in Constantinople 235 intellectuals were arrested and taken to prison and by April 29 this number was far beyond 800. They all were then subjected to unspeakable tortures and executed. Such famous Armenians as Siamanto, Grigor Zohrap, Ruben Sevak, Daniel Varuzhan and other progressive minded intellectuals turned into the victims of the Turkish sword.
The third phase, as masterminded by the Turk slaughterers, was the extermination of unprotected and peaceful Armenian population, the majority of who were women, elderly and children. Horrendous death marches, exiles and pogroms were on the way. Armenians were enforced either to denounce Christianity or be killed or be deported. All the wretched remnants of Armenians in the Western Armenia were forced into deportations and death marches heading towards the deserts of Mesopotamia, mainly to Der-Zor, where they were exterminated.


This massacre had outrageous and horrible outcome. The Western Armenia is deprived of its native population-the Armenians that used to be its permanent inhabitants for more than 2000 years. Within one year, some 200 000 Christian Armenians were forcibly turned into Muslims, who now live at the Basin of Chorox River. More than 1 000 000 Armenians became refugees and were spread all over the world.
The material losses that were suffered were also enormous. According to the Statistical data, the population of 66 towns and some 2500 villages of Western Armenia was slaughtered. 2350 churches and monasteries were looted and destroyed. 1500 schools and colleges were ruined. The Armenians suffered a loss of 14.5 billion francs. And during the years of 1915-1916, 1 500 000 Armenians were massacred.
After 1916-ies
The Turkish encroachment on Armenians did not end up here. During the 1918 invasion on the Transcaucasus another 500 000 Armenians fall victim to the advancing Turkish troops, and in 1920-1922 this time led by an already Kemal Government, as many as 260 000 Armenians were executed. During the period of 1895-1922 more than 2 500 000 Armenians were slaughtered.
It is doubtless, that the events of 1895 and following years are to be qualified as GENOCIDE.
It was Genocide as the annihilation of the entire Armenian nation, its physical extermination was planned at a Government level … It was the first Genocide of the 20th century and an unprecedented event that happened to Armenians. The Government of Turkey obstinately refuses to accept this undeniable fact. And many of the countries all over the world, following its example, continue to turn a blind eye in the face of the Reality
Such a crime against mankind, while we are silent. Let's struggle, that such a crime were not executed any more, irrespective of ours of a national belonging.

Why Mets Yeghern Qualifies as Genocide

The UN convention
The UN Convention of December 18, 1948 clearly defines the term Genocide as cited below:
Article I. The Contracting Parties confirm that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and punish.
Article II. In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such: a) Killing members of the group;
b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
Article III. The following acts shall be punished:
a) Genocide;
b) Conspiracy to commit genocide;
c) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide;
d) Attempt to commit genocide;
e) Complicity in genocide.
Article IV. Persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article III shall be punished, whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals.
Article V. The Contracting Parties undertake to enact, in accordance with their respective Constitutions, the necessary legislation to give affect to the provision of the present Convention and, in particular, to provide effective penalties for persons guilty of genocide or of any of the other acts enumerated in Article III.
Article VI. Persons charged with genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article III shall be tried by a competent tribunal of the State in the territory of which the act was committed, or by such international penal tribunal as may have jurisdiction with respect to those Contracting Parties which shall have accepted its jurisdiction.
Article VII. Genocide and the other acts enumerated in Article III shall not be considered as political crimes for the purpose of extradition. The Contracting Parties pledge themselves in such cases to grant extradition in accordance with their laws and treaties in force.
Article VIII. Any Contracting Party may call upon the competent organs of the United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article III.
Article IX. Disputes between the Contracting Parties relating to the interpretation, application or fulfillment of the present Convention, including those relating to the responsibility of a State for genocide or for any of the other acts enumerated in Article III, shall be submitted to the International Court of Justice at the request of any of the parties to the dispute.

Thus all those acts enumerated in Article II of the Convention are crimes of genocide. The Armenian genocide (Mets Yeghern) is about all the mentioned five points in general, about the first two points and in particular:
a) Killing members of the group; and b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group. Therefore there is not even a slightest doubt that what had happened in 1915 in Western Armenia was Genocide.
As the Article III of the Convention states
a) the act of Genocide and b) Conspiracy to commit genocide should be punished;
which means that the Ottoman Empire (presently Turkey) that had committed the crime of genocide against Armenians must be punished by the international laws.
According to the IV and VI articles of the Convention the persons that are guilty of committing genocide shall be tried either in the territory of the State where the act has been committed or by an international penal tribunal.
In 1919 the Court Martial in Constantinople condemned Talaat, Enver and Jemal Pashas, and Doctor Naseem to death in absentia. But the sentence was never enforced. Years later that verdict was carried out by Armenian revenge takers.
Recognition of the Armenian Genocide

List of countries
The Genocide of Armenians has been condemned by the international community at various levels: starting from individual intellectuals to entire nations and countries. As of today the Mets Yeghern (the synonym of Armenian Genocide in Armenian) has been recognized and condemned by 18 countries of the 200 in the world (plus EU). Those countries are: *
1. Uruguay (A Parliamentary Resolution was adopted in 1965, followed by a Law adopted in 2004)
2. Cyprus (A Parliamentary Resolution was adopted in 1982)
3. European Union (Parliamentary Resolutions adopted in 1987, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005)
4. Argentina (A Senate Resolution was adopted in 1993, followed by a Law adopted in 2004)
5. Russia (A State Duma Resolution was adopted in 1995)
6. Canada (Resolutions were adopted in 1996, 2002 and 2004)
7. Greece (A Parliamentary Resolution was adopted in 1996)
8. Lebanon (Resolutions were adopted in 1997 and 2000)
9. Belgium (A Senate Resolution was adopted in 1998)
10. France (Parliamentary Resolutions were adopted in 1998 and 2000, followed by a Law adopted in 2001)
11. Sweden (A Parliamentary report of 2000)
12. Vatican (In 2000)
13. Italy (A Resolution adopted in 2000)
14. Switzerland (A Resolution adopted in 2003)
15. Slovakia (A Resolution adopted in 2004)
16. The Netherlands (A Resolution adopted in 2004)
17. Poland (A Resolution adopted in 2004)
18. Venezuela (A Resolution adopted in 2005)
19. Germany (A Resolution adopted in 2005)
20. Lithuania (A Resolution adopted in 2005)
21. Chile (A Resolution adopted in 2007)