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РусскийSwedish lawyer: What happened to Armenians is genocide, not deportation
On February 19, the Swedish Radio broadcasted an interview about the Armenian Genocide with the renowned expert of International Law, Ove Bring, armeniangenocide100.org reports.
Professor Bring described the situation in the Ottoman Turkey during the Armenian Genocide, stressing that the government had the task of assimilation of Christian and other minorities of the Empire, which was carried out by their extermination, taking the advantage of uncontrolled situation created as a result of the WWI.
Professor Bring described the course of Armenian Genocide, emphasizing its gradual nature, as at the first stage the Armenian intellectuals were arrested and killed, and then the rest of population, mostly women, children and elderly were deported and exterminated. Comparing with other genocides, Professor noted that the Holocaust, Cambodia’s genocide and other massacres also took place in similar gradual manner.
The expert of International law particularly noted that what happened to Armenians in the Ottoman Empire was indeed a genocide, rather than simply deportation, as deportation means advanced planning of people’s resettlement with preparation of necessary conditions and settlements. According to Professor Bring in the contrary, it is ordered to kill as many as possible.
Professor Bring also described the active participation in Genocide of the Empire’s Kurdish population, noting that many Kurds today do not reject the fact that they live in the houses of Armenians and use their property.
In conclusion, Professor Bring noted that according to various estimates about 1-1.5 million people were killed during the Genocide, there is data of about 900 thousand victims, published in 1916, as well as numerous testimonies, and it is the result of Genocide that currently Armenians are scattered all over the world.
