Studies in Comparative Genocide

300 Pages·1999·30.153 MB·English

by  Levon Chorbajian, George Shirinian (eds.)

STUDIES IN COMPARATIVE GENOCIDE
Also by Levon Chorbajian
ARMENIA IN CRISIS: The 1988 Earthquake, by Pierre Verluise
(translator)
THE CAUCASIAN KNOT: The History and Geopolitics of
Nagomo-Karabagh (with Patrick Donabedian and Claude Mutafian)
THE HAND IN YOUR POCKET MAY NOT BE YOUR OWN (editor)
READINGS IN CRITICAL SOCIOLOGY (editor)
Also by George Shirinian
PROBLEMS OF GENOCIDE (editor)
Studies in Comparative
Genocide
Edited by
Levan Chorbajian
Professor of Sociology
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Massachusetts
USA
and
George Shirinian
Acting CEO
Toronto Public Library, York Office
Canada
First published in Great Britain 1999 by
MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and London
Companies and representatives throughout the world
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978-1-349-27350-8 ISBN 978-1-349-27348-5 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-27348-5
First published in the United States of America 1999 by
ST. MARTIN'S PRESS, INC.,
Scholarly and Reference Division,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010
ISBN 978-0-312-21933-8
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Studies in comparative genocide I edited by Levon Chorbajian and
George Shirinian.
p. em.
Originally presented at a conference held in Yerevan, Republic of
Armenia, 1995.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-312-21933-8 (cloth)
I. Genocide. I. Chorbajian, Levon. II. Shirinian, George, 1949-
HV6322.7.S78 1998
304.6'63--dcZJ 98-38455
CIP
Selection and editorial matter© Levon Chorbajian and George Shirinian 1999
Text© Zoryan Institute 1999, excluding
Chapter I© Greenwood Publishing Company 1987, 1999
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1999
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made
without written permission.
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Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to
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The authors have asserted their rights to be identified as the authors of this work in
accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and
sustained forest sources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
08 07 06 05 04 03 02 01 00 99
To all victims and survivors of genocide
Contents
Preface ix
Notes on the Contributors xi
Introduction xv
Levon Chorbajian
PART I APPROACHES TO GENOCIDE
1 State Power and Genocidal Intent: On the Uses of
Genocide in the 1\ventieth Century 3
Roger W. Smith
2 Science, Modernity and Authorized Thrror: Reconsidering
the Genocidal State 15
Irving L. Horowitz
3 Comparison of Genocides 31
Yehuda Bauer
PART II THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
4 A Conceptual Method for Examining the
Consequences of the Armenian Genocide 47
Rouben P. Adalian
5 Philosophy of State-Subject Relations, Ottoman
Concepts of '!Yranny, and the Demonization of
Subjects: Conservative Ottomanism as a Source of
Genocidal Behaviour, 1821-1918 60
James J. Reid
6 The Convergent Roles of the State and a Governmental
Party in the Armenian Genocide 92
Vahakn N. Dadrian
7 The Genocide of the Armenians and the Silence of
the Thrks 125
TanerAk~am
vii
Vlll Contents
8 Turkey: a Cultural Genocide 147
Anush Hovanissian
PART III COMPARATIVE GENOCIDE, GENOCIDE
DENIAL AND GENOCIDE PREVENTION
9 Testing Theories Brutally: Armenia (1915), Bosnia
(1992) and Rwanda (1994) 157
Helen Fein
10 Pol Pot and Enver Pasha: a Comparison of the
Cambodian and Armenian Genocides 165
Ben Kiernan
11 The Ukrainian Famine of 1932-3: the Role of the
Ukrainian Diaspora in Research and Public Discussion 182
Frank Sysyn
12 The Psychology and Politics of Genocide Denial:
a Comparison of Four Case Studies 216
Henry R. Huttenbach
13 Breaking the Succession of Evil 230
Franklin H. Littell
14 Preventing Genocide: Activating Bystanders, Helping
Victims Heal, Helping Groups Overcome Hostility 251
Ervin Staub
Index 261
Preface
The essays in this volume were originally presented as part of a larger
conference on comparative genocide held in Yerevan, Republic of
Armenia in April 1995. The conference was jointly sponsored by the
government of the Republic of Armenia through the National Com
mission of Armenia on the 80th Anniversary Commemoration of the
Armenian Genocide and the Zoryan Institute for Contemporary
Armenian Research and Documentation in Cambridge, Massachusetts
and Toronto, Ontario.
The conference was part of the first scholarly commemoration of the
1915 Armenian Genocide in an independent Armenian state. For most
of the Soviet period, the Genocide was deemed too nationalistic a
topic for open discussion, and the need of Armenians for recognition
and commemoration was subordinated to larger Soviet concerns. Only
a series of spontaneous demonstrations in 1965, on the occasion of the
fiftieth anniversary of the officially neglected Genocide, forced the
Soviet Armenian government to acknowledge popular feeling and to
construct the Dzidzernagapert genocide monument. The impressive
memorial is located close to the centre of Yerevan, on a hill over
looking the capital. The Genocide Museum in Yerevan was only
recently constructed as an outgrowth of the 1995 conference itself.
To host international scholars in Armenia to discuss the Armenian
Genocide and other genocides was, therefore, a truly historic event.
The conception of the conference, from the beginning, was a com
parative one, and this is one of its strengths. The government of
Armenia and the Zoryan Institute were committed to framing the
Armenian Genocide both in terms of its uniqueness - and all geno
cides are unique in their particulars - and in presenting it as an
important part of the continual unfolding of genocides during the
twentieth century, and tragically, it can be predicted, into the twenty
first century so long as perpetrators go unpunished, denial is unchal
lenged and mechanisms for effective intervention fail to be created.
The comparative component is built into the chapters by Henry
Huttenbach, Helen Fein, Yehuda Bauer and Ben Kiernan. It is also
reflected in the total scope of the chapters that consider, in varying
degrees, the Armenian, Jewish, Ukrainian, Cambodian, East
African, Yugoslav and Roma experiences. The juxtaposing of histories
ix
x Preface
contributes to breaking down insular, national perspectives and chau
vinistic attitudes by calling attention to genocide as a universal social
process. This analytical and comparative framework assists in promot
ing empathy and building bridges of responsibility essential to the
effective publicizing and combating of genocide.
The editors thank the many people who provided a forum for these
papers by making the conference possible. In particular, we thank
Levon Ter-Petrossian, first President of the Republic of Armenia,
who established the National Commission on the 80th Anniversary
Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide and the heads of the
Commission, Mr Gagik Haroutunian, then Vice-President of the
Republic, and Dr Jirair Libaridian, Senior Adviser to the President,
for their invaluable logistical support in Armenia. We note the key role
played by the Sarkissian brothers - Souren, Hrair and Kourken. With
out their generous financial support, the conference would not have
been possible. We also thank Zoryan Institute Conference Committee
members Mr Kourken Sarkissian, Dr Levon Charkoudian and Dr
Kbachig T6161yan, the last of Wesleyan University, for their dedicated
efforts. Ms Laura Yardumian of Zoryan, Cambridge and Ms Carole
DeGrace of Zoryan, Toronto deserve special recognition for their
tireless efforts on behalf of this project. The success of the conference
depended on their careful, often daily, attention to conference details
over the course of many months. Dr Anny Bakalian of the College of
Notre Dame of Maryland and Dr Markar Melkonian of Van Nuys,
California, dear friends of longstanding, provided wise and timely
editorial advice. Ms Annabelle Buckley, our editor at Macmillan, has
been outstanding in providing the encouragement, patience and
expertise without which this volume would not have been possible.
The views expressed in this volume are those of their respective
authors and not necessarily those of the editors, the Zoryan Institute
or the government of the Republic of Armenia.
Levon Chorbajian
Billerica, Massachusetts