THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2006
A thorn in Bush’s side
Regarding the article “U.S. moves to punish Chávez with arms ban” (May 16): The United States has now imposed sanctions on Venezuela for its “lack of cooperation” in America’s fight against “terrorism.” While odd on its face, this makes perfect sense if one understands the terminology.
“Terrorism” is simply an epithet of convenience, devoid of any inherent meaning, used by the rich, the strong and the oppressors to demonize the poor, the weak and the oppressed. Since President Hugo Chávez has consistently (and colorfully) championed the latter against the former, it is inconceivable that he (or anyone else with moral and ethical values) would cooperate with the United States in this regard.
John V. Whitbeck, Jidda, Saudi Arabia
Nuclear power
Your editorial “Nuclear power turns green” (May 15) was a welcome recognition of the urgent environmental need for a greater worldwide use of nuclear energy.
The civil nuclear industry’s impressive 50-year record of safely handling nuclear fuel (new and used) worldwide ought to be a good basis for the public confidence you seek. As to your concern about plutonium becoming “more accessible to terrorists,” nothing in current or proposed arrangements justifies such concern.
Your worry that the U.S.-India nuclear deal will undermine the nuclear non- proliferation treaty is unwarranted. As President Bill Clinton’s ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, I concur with two successive leaders of the IAEA, Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, that such a pact is fair and needed. It will remedy an accident of history, put India on the same basis as China, and foster maximum use of clean energy by the world’s largest democracy.
John Ritch, London
Turkey and Armenia
Regarding your editorial “Turkey, Armenia and denial” (May 16): I was not recalled to Turkey to protest the French bill that would make it illegal to deny that the Armenian genocide occurred. I went home to hold consultations on the issue and returned to Paris within the same week. At the end of the consultations, we came to the same conclusion as your editorial: “Historical truths must be established through dispassionate research and debate, not legislation.”
The charges against five journalists in Turkey mentioned in your editorial were the result of an interpretation by a prosecutor of the penal code adopted by the Parliament in September 2004 as part of the effort to harmonize our judicial system with the European Union’s. The court’s decision corrected this interpretation and charges were dropped, creating a legal precedent.
To pretend that the Turkish government “considers even discussion of the issue to be a grave national insult and reacts to it with hysteria” is not fair. Numerous conferences are being organized in Turkey that will include the participation of scholars on the tragic events that occurred in the time of the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Several articles and books reflecting conflicting interpretations have been published in Turkish. The subject is being freely debated in Turkey as acknowledged by the leaders of Armenia. It is regrettable, however, to see that in certain countries there are attempts to restrict the freedom of opinion and expression on this issue.
It should be remembered that there is no agreement among international scholars on the death tolls or the true nature of the tragic events that caused significant losses of life among Armenians and Turks during World War I.
Bearing this in mind, the prime minister of Turkey, together with the leader of the main opposition party, last year proposed to the president of Armenia to establish a joint commission with the goal of shedding light on this controversy; Turkey announced that it is ready to recognize its conclusions.
We expect this historic proposal to enjoy worldwide support so that the century-old conflict will be resolved and the traditional friendship between Turks and Armenians restored.
Osman Koruturk, Paris, Turkey’s ambassador to France
A thorn in Bush’s side
Regarding the article “U.S. moves to punish Chávez with arms ban” (May 16): The United States has now imposed sanctions on Venezuela for its “lack of cooperation” in America’s fight against “terrorism.” While odd on its face, this makes perfect sense if one understands the terminology.
“Terrorism” is simply an epithet of convenience, devoid of any inherent meaning, used by the rich, the strong and the oppressors to demonize the poor, the weak and the oppressed. Since President Hugo Chávez has consistently (and colorfully) championed the latter against the former, it is inconceivable that he (or anyone else with moral and ethical values) would cooperate with the United States in this regard.
John V. Whitbeck, Jidda, Saudi Arabia
Nuclear power
Your editorial “Nuclear power turns green” (May 15) was a welcome recognition of the urgent environmental need for a greater worldwide use of nuclear energy.
The civil nuclear industry’s impressive 50-year record of safely handling nuclear fuel (new and used) worldwide ought to be a good basis for the public confidence you seek. As to your concern about plutonium becoming “more accessible to terrorists,” nothing in current or proposed arrangements justifies such concern.
Your worry that the U.S.-India nuclear deal will undermine the nuclear non- proliferation treaty is unwarranted. As President Bill Clinton’s ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, I concur with two successive leaders of the IAEA, Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, that such a pact is fair and needed. It will remedy an accident of history, put India on the same basis as China, and foster maximum use of clean energy by the world’s largest democracy.
John Ritch, London
Turkey and Armenia
Regarding your editorial “Turkey, Armenia and denial” (May 16): I was not recalled to Turkey to protest the French bill that would make it illegal to deny that the Armenian genocide occurred. I went home to hold consultations on the issue and returned to Paris within the same week. At the end of the consultations, we came to the same conclusion as your editorial: “Historical truths must be established through dispassionate research and debate, not legislation.”
The charges against five journalists in Turkey mentioned in your editorial were the result of an interpretation by a prosecutor of the penal code adopted by the Parliament in September 2004 as part of the effort to harmonize our judicial system with the European Union’s. The court’s decision corrected this interpretation and charges were dropped, creating a legal precedent.
To pretend that the Turkish government “considers even discussion of the issue to be a grave national insult and reacts to it with hysteria” is not fair. Numerous conferences are being organized in Turkey that will include the participation of scholars on the tragic events that occurred in the time of the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Several articles and books reflecting conflicting interpretations have been published in Turkish. The subject is being freely debated in Turkey as acknowledged by the leaders of Armenia. It is regrettable, however, to see that in certain countries there are attempts to restrict the freedom of opinion and expression on this issue.
It should be remembered that there is no agreement among international scholars on the death tolls or the true nature of the tragic events that caused significant losses of life among Armenians and Turks during World War I.
Bearing this in mind, the prime minister of Turkey, together with the leader of the main opposition party, last year proposed to the president of Armenia to establish a joint commission with the goal of shedding light on this controversy; Turkey announced that it is ready to recognize its conclusions.
We expect this historic proposal to enjoy worldwide support so that the century-old conflict will be resolved and the traditional friendship between Turks and Armenians restored.
Osman Koruturk, Paris, Turkey’s ambassador to France
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