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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 4:54:26 GMT -5
Russian Olympics clouded by 19th century deaths (Reuters) - A Muslim diaspora is demanding the Sochi 2014 Olympics be canceled or moved unless Russia apologizes for the 19th century deaths of many of their ancestors in the location where the Winter Games will be held. The Circassian diaspora, Muslim indigenous people from the northwest Caucasus now scattered across the globe, join a swelling list of opponents to the Games -- from environmentalist group Greenpeace to Amnesty International. Circassians argue the Sochi Games are as insensitive as hosting a sporting competition on the grounds of the Nazi death camp Auschwitz. 2014 marks 150 years since a tsarist military campaign wiped out 300,000 Circassians in and around Sochi. Although recorded by Russian imperial historians in 1864, no nation has recognized the deaths as genocide. Deportations and turmoil led many Circassians south to Turkey and elsewhere, and their seven million or so descendants are spread across the world from the United States to Jordan to Israel. About 700,000 remain in the northwest Caucasus. "The Games are part of Russia's policy of eradicating Circassian history," said U.S.-born Lisa Jarkasi, co-founder of No Sochi 2014, a lobbying group comprised of 30 Circassian organizations. "They are constructing on a mass grave. We need to put a stop to this," she told a North Caucasus conference organized by U.S. think tank Jamestown Foundation. No Sochi 2014, which held protests at last month's Vancouver Games as well as in New York and Istanbul, has appealed to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to reconsider the chosen site but has not received an answer. The Sochi 2014 Organising Committee, in a statement to Reuters, said: "It is not our responsibility to comment on historic or political events or activity." The Kremlin declined immediate comment. On Saturday Circassians, using documents from the state archives in Tbilisi, formally presented Georgian lawmakers with a resolution asking them to recognize what occurred as genocide. Should ex-Soviet Georgia agree to such a move it would likely further strain relations with Russia, still in tatters after the two fought a brief war in August 2008 over Georgia's breakaway region South Ossetia. The closest the Russian government has come to apologizing for the bloodshed was in 1994 when former President Boris Yeltsin acknowledged that resistance to tsarist violence was legitimate. Source: Reuters nosochi2014.com/news/russian-olympics-clouded-by-19th-century-deaths.php
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 5:00:21 GMT -5
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 5:02:33 GMT -5
Monday, March 22, 2010 Will Georgia Recognize the Circassian Genocide?By Giorgi Kvelashvili On March 20-21, the Georgian capital of Tbilisi hosted the conference: Hidden Nations, Enduring Crimes: The Circassians and the Peoples of the North Caucasus Between Past and Future. Organized by the Jamestown Foundation and Ilia State University’s International School for Caucasus Studies, the two-day event brought together representatives of Circassian communities, as well as think-tanks, policy and research institutions and academia working on Caucasus-related issues. Several members of Georgian Parliament also attended the conference whose culminating part was the signing of an appeal by the Circassian participants to Georgian Parliament to recognize the massacres and deportations of Circassians orchestrated by Tsarist Russia in the North Caucasus as genocide. No doubt, if Georgia agrees to recognize the mass killings of Circassians as genocide, it will infuriate Russia and risk further worsening the already-strained Russo-Georgian relations. But could the recognition benefit Tbilisi in some other ways which could outweigh the Russian ire? The recognition issue has quite a history of its own. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin's 1994 statement acknowledged that “resistance to the tsarist forces [in the 19th century] was legitimate,” but he did not recognize “the guilt of the tsarist government for the genocide.” A few years later, the leaders of Kabardino-Balkaria and Adygea sent appeals to the Duma “to reconsider the situation and to issue the needed apology.” In October 2006, the Circassian public organizations of Russia, Turkey, Israel, Jordan and several other countries where ethnic Circassians live in large numbers sent the president of the European Parliament a letter with a request to recognize the genocide against the Circassian people. There has been no action taken so far. It appears the issue is now closely linked to the upcoming Sochi Winter Olympic Games, which are opposed by many Circassians on the grounds that the city of Sochi and large swaths of land in the northwestern Caucasus are their ancestral habitat saturated with Circassian blood. Their protests have taken different forms; from appeals to governments and international human rights and environmental organizations to organizing public awareness campaigns in printed media and on the Internet. Some enthusiasts have launched the website No Sochi 2014 with a countdown to the 150-year anniversary of the Circassian genocide in 2014 – a time when the Sochi Olympics are scheduled to take place. Hundreds of thousands of Circassians and other ethnicities were killed and many more were deported to the Ottoman Empire by Tsarist Russia when the latter expanded to the Caucasus from the late 18th century to 1860s. Georgian writer of the 19th century Alexander Kazbegi has dedicated some of his novels to the Circassian tragedy. Among those affected by Russia’s expansionist policies were Muslim Abkhaz as well. Living along Georgia’s Black Sea coast in the south Caucasus, Abkhaz, related to the Circassians by language but historically and culturally closely linked to Georgians living on the same land, had been Islamized after the Ottomans conquered western Georgia in the 16th century. Many Abkhaz deported from Abkhazia to the Ottoman Empire found shelter in Ajara, another Georgian province where a mainly Muslim Georgian population lived by then. Since the Russian invasion in August 2008 and the subsequent occupation of the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali, Tbilisi has intensified its efforts to engage with the North Caucasus more productively. A parliamentary inter-faction contact group has been created in addition to the establishment of Georgian Public Broadcaster’s (GPB) First Caucasus TV channel to reach out to the audiences in the North Caucasus and elsewhere in the former Soviet space. Georgian Parliament has already appealed to “the republics and peoples in the North Caucasus” to underline the importance of “cordial relations” between “Georgia and its Caucasian brothers.” Although the First Caucasus has been taken off the French Satellite Eutelsat, allegedly under Russian pressure, GPB hopes it will be able to shortly return its Russian-language channel to the satellite in one way or another. Russian dissidents and human rights activists have been visiting Tbilisi more often than ever before, which apparently has a North Caucasus linkage given their role in exposing flagrant violations of human rights there. A possible recognition of the Circassian genocide might be logically put in the aforementioned Georgian activities, which could strengthen the image of Georgia as a defender of “the Caucasus cause” in the eyes of not only Circassians but other ethnic minorities in the North Caucasus too. But if Georgia wants to achieve more than a PR success, it might be prudent to consider other additional measures as well: Georgia should act in concert with other nations, most importantly those where Circassian diasporas reside; mass deportations of Chechens and Ingush as well as other ethnicities by Soviet dictator Stalin in the 1940s and ethnic cleansings of Georgians from Abkazia and Tskhinvali must be closely linked to the Tsarist atrocities in the 19th century since they constitute virtually the same imperialist policy; and lastly, the scheduled Sochi Olympics must be closely tied to the Circassian and environmental issues as well as to the illegal Russian occupation of Georgian lands. jamestownfoundation.blogspot.com/2010/03/should-georgia-recognize-circassian.html
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Patrinos
Amicus
Peloponnesos uber alles
Posts: 4,763
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Post by Patrinos on Mar 26, 2010 5:37:20 GMT -5
Since when do Turks dare to talk about genocides??
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 5:49:30 GMT -5
Since when do Turks dare to talk about genocides?? Since the 5% of Turkish population accounts for the Circassians. Circassians Towards the end of the Russian-Circassian War (1763–1864) many Circassians fled their homelands in the Caucasus and settled in the Ottoman Empire. Today there is still a considerable Circassian population, estimated to constitute 5% of the total population, or over 3 million. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Turkey
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Patrinos
Amicus
Peloponnesos uber alles
Posts: 4,763
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Post by Patrinos on Mar 26, 2010 7:23:42 GMT -5
That doesn't answer to my question...
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 7:31:02 GMT -5
That doesn't answer to my question... It does.
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 7:51:37 GMT -5
1864- 2014 Circassian Genocide Olympics In the end of one hundred years of war period, Circassia region of the Caucasus was invaded and colonized by Russian Empire in 1864. During that period of time the inhabitants of the West Caucasus, more than one million five hundred thousand Circassians (Adige, Abkhaz and Wubikh people), were forced to leave their land in famine after all their villages and fields were burned and destroyed. They were exiled from their land to Ottoman Empire under inhumane conditions. Sochi region, where the 2014 Winter Olympics will be held, was the center that the parliament of independent and free Circassia was gathering until 1864. After the Russian invasion it was not only the Circassians removed from their land but also all their cultural heritage and even their graves were completely destroyed brutally. Today in the state museums of Sochi there is nothing displayed related to Circassians, the autochthonous people of that land for thousands of years. The real ancient history of Sochi extends to Anatolian Hattis, famous Troy, Meot and Sind Empires is almost forgotten. The Russian written history of Sochi begins in 1830 with the victories bombardment of Russian Tsar Navy landing soldiers to the Socha village which was destroyed and renamed by Russians as Navagiski fortified territory. In the museums of Sochi you can only see the pictures of poor Russian mujicks who were brought from inner Russia then forced to settle to Circassia after the Circassian Exile and also the Cossacks who even appropriating the national clothes of the exiled inhabitants shamelessly. The grandchildren of the massacred and exiled native people of the 2014 winter Olympics city Sochi and the Krasnodar Kray still live in the countries they were exiled to but their faces turned towards to their homeland. There are millions of Circassians who live in the other side of Black Sea in Turkey, are longing and waiting to repatriate to their motherland. Now in destroyed Circassian villages, on the lost graves of Circassians, in Circassia, there are true strangers living there. As a result of a hundred years of iron curtain they probably don’t even have any idea about the real owners of those lands. Today Circassia became Russian Riviera where the first and the foremost Mr. Putin having rest, swimming and skiing. The Russian Federation governments are still completely blind and deaf to develop any empathy or to understand the feelings and the longings of the people of the Caucasus. Moreover the real history is distorted by the Russian state purposely. To conceal the massacre and the exile of the ninety percent of Circassians, the reality of the Circassian legendary resistance to colonial powers for more than one hundred years is obviously ignored. For that purpose producing the factitious history thesis of 450-th years voluntary joining together of Circassia’s to Marx’s so called prison of nations Tsarist Russia is very tragicomic and flippantly far away from the seriousness of a statehood. Today Russian Federation government appropriates funds of millions of rubles for spreading that propaganda to all over the Circassian federal republics (Adigeya, Karachai, Cherkes and Kabardino Balkaria) by official campaigns and imposing anniversary ceremonies instead of using that money to improve the conditions in those underdeveloped republics. Even more, regardless of the fact that all the criticism and the protest of the Circassian intellectuals and organizations both in the Caucasus and in the Diaspora, hasty preparations for 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics is still pursuing heartily. The geography and the ecological structure of that beautiful and sacred part of our land are destroyed by commands of the inconsiderate Russian politicians in Moscow atrociously. After Circassian exile in 1864 Sochi was emptied from Circassians and the Kbaada Valley was renamed as Krasnaya Polyana where the heavy construction equipments are excavating the mountains for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics now. On the contrary of Russian culture, Circassians are very respectful even to the death bodies of their enemies. Now the skulls and the bones of our honorable ancestors are thrown away all over the place by Russians barbarously. The planned grotesque destroying process of that one of the most beautiful parts’ of the Caucasus is very meaningful for Circassians. By all means we, the people of Caucasus, we are not surprised from the Russian behaviour. All the process is running by the commands of the new tsar of Russia, Mr. Vladimir Putin who has the blood of the thousands of children of Caucasus on his hands, from Chechenya, Daghestan, Beslan... etc. May Mr. Putin as an inheritor of General Yermalov, General Vorontzov, General Baryatinski, is not able to understand how his smart decisions cause pain for Circassians and confronting them. But the time will manifest. After the glasnost the governors of the Circassian republics in Caucasus were forced by public to take action to built Circassian Exile monuments. Although it has been long years, there are still not any government funds received to finish that project. At that point the supreme government shows the highest effort indeed. Nobody but only them can build such an expensive and meaningful genocide monument to our land other than 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics which must have been the symbol of the friendship and the brotherhood of people. Despite Sochi is the place where the “Drujba Derevo” (the tree of friendship) belongs to, there is no any native people left in that land, there is no any native people is allowed to settle there. As the Circassians both in Caucasus and the Diaspora announced before by sending lots of protesting letters to Olympics Committee, even the idea of holding Olympics in Sochi on the soil of genocide where the hundreds of thousands of Circassian tears, moans and curse are bleeding, can not be acceptable. 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics will always be remembered only as “ 2014 Circassian Genocide Olympics”. Unfortunately 2014 Circassian Genocide Olympics is not only making the Olympics a tool of inane politics but it is also renewing the sorrow of Circassians in exile. Besides it also intensifies the deep and legitimate distrust on Russia for hundreds of years. It causes hate. As the inheritor of one of the most humanist culture in the world, we, the people of the Caucasus, inspite of the past and the present, we don’t want to have any kind of abhorrence towards other people including the Russians. Still, we can not be unresponsive to the provocative actions of declining and distorting the thousands of years old real history of our people and our land. As Circassians, as grandchildren of our ancestors we have enough pride and honor to not to bear this denial. Again, we want to urge all the Russian Federation governments and rightminded intellectuals of Russia. Please stop those provocative actions. Stop Imperialist and GreatRussian (Velikorus) chauvinist behaviour. As a criminal you can not pretend to be fair, you can not to powerful forever! You are losing the Caucasus, you are losing all the people of the Caucasus! Sefer BERZEG nosochi2014.com/articles/1864-2014-circassian-genocide-olympics.php
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Patrinos
Amicus
Peloponnesos uber alles
Posts: 4,763
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Post by Patrinos on Mar 26, 2010 8:13:06 GMT -5
If you demand from Russians to cancel the winter Olympics because of what they did to Circassians, Turks must kill themselves because of the deeds of your fathers, grandfathers, grandgrandfathers etc etc
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 8:20:59 GMT -5
If you demand from Russians to cancel the winter Olympics because of what they did to Circassians, Turks must kill themselves because of the deeds of your fathers, grandfathers, grandgrandfathers etc etc Cancelling the Olympics is what the Circassian peoples demand, and personally I support them.
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Patrinos
Amicus
Peloponnesos uber alles
Posts: 4,763
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Post by Patrinos on Mar 26, 2010 8:22:26 GMT -5
Canceling Kemalism is what Civilization demands, and i support it.
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 26, 2010 8:25:34 GMT -5
Canceling Kemalism is what Civilization demands, and i support it. Good on you.
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Post by thracian08 on Mar 26, 2010 12:35:23 GMT -5
I support the Cerkez fully.
Turks have been one of the most misunderstood people because of lobby's in Europe and USA. Additionally, people we conquered have complexes and in order to feel better always try to portray us as the bad guys.
I will place an article on this in another thread.
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aayy
Amicus
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Post by aayy on Mar 28, 2010 6:18:28 GMT -5
Probably Cerkez have complexes. Together with Turks...
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aayy
Amicus
Posts: 469
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Post by aayy on Mar 28, 2010 6:31:45 GMT -5
BTW I am not sure nowaday Russian Federation is a successor of Czarist Russia and its activity, because between Czarist Russia and Russian Federation we had communist ruling and the communists came to power on the base of complete neglecting of the czarist government politics.
Before those wars Russia was surrounded by Muslim and other non-Cristian countries/people, who invaded Russia from time to time and enslaved our people.
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 29, 2010 3:42:35 GMT -5
Probably Cerkez have complexes. Together with Turks... Such as?
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aayy
Amicus
Posts: 469
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Post by aayy on Mar 29, 2010 11:26:40 GMT -5
Probably Cerkez have complexes. Together with Turks... Such as? the same complexes as thracian wrote about:
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 30, 2010 0:39:04 GMT -5
the same complexes as thracian wrote about: Most of the Circassian population now lives in Turkey, not in Circassia.
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aayy
Amicus
Posts: 469
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Post by aayy on Mar 30, 2010 9:56:09 GMT -5
Cerkez know they won't achieve anything, they just want to make show. I guess they are "encouraged" by those who try to take revange on Russia over Abhazia and S.Ossetia.
Some kill Abhazians now and express such a deep regret over Abhazians killed during 19th centure wars.
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Post by Vizier of Oz on Mar 30, 2010 12:21:41 GMT -5
Cerkez know they won't achieve anything, they just want to make show. I guess they are "encouraged" by those who try to take revange on Russia over Abhazia and S.Ossetia. Some kill Abhazians now and express such a deep regret over Abhazians killed during 19th centure wars. Perhaps some circles encourage Cerkez, but after all, it is the Cerkez who do not forget the the aggressive policies of the Czarist Russia, which involved massacre and deportation of the native populations of Caucasus.
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