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Aramean organizations’ appeal to the
United Nations: Help to prevent ethnic cleansing Iraq of its Aramean
indigenous nation.
A letter to Ban
Ki-Moon by: Aram-Naharaim Organisation, Aramean Democratic Organisation
and Platform Aram.
Nr.:
2008-10-31/18
Netherlands,
31st of October 2008
Subject:
Appeal to the United Nation: Help to prevent the ethnic cleansing of the
Aramean indigenous people of Iraq
The
Most Honourable Secretary-General of the United
Nations
His
Excellency Ban Ki-moon
U.N.
Headquarters, Room S-3800
New
York, NY 10017
United
States
Your
Excellency,
Following our letter of 6th of May 2008 [1], we,
the undersigned, the Arameans of Aram-Naharaim Organization, the Aramean
Democratic Organization and Platform Aram, again feel it necessary to
draw your attention to the deteriorating situation of the Aramean (not
to be confused with ‘Armenians’) Indigenous nation of Iraq and other
minorities in the Mosul area.
As it
is known to you, since 28th of September 2008, dark forces of
intolerance in Mosul have been threatening, killing, robbing and
expelling our people from the city. According to the reports, more than
10.000 Indigenous Arameans and other Christians were forced to leave
Mosul for outlying villages for security and dozens have been killed.
Although the Iraqi government is doing her best to provide our nation
in Mosul with security, this has not prevented the mass exodus and
brutal ethnic cleansing of the original inhabitants of Mosul before the
eyes of the world by those whose dictionary obviously lacks words like
brotherhood and peace.
Your
Excellency,
There
seems to be a certain well prepared pattern, a Comprehensive Grand Plan,
in the minds of those who wish to ethnically cleanse Iraq and Mosul of
its Aramean people, who have been present for thousands of years in this
part of the world, which also became known as the Cradle of
Civilization.
For
this reason, we believe that the perpetrators do not act out of blind
rage or fanaticism. On the contrary, it seems that there is a
well-thought-out plan behind these terrible persecutions and killings.
After all, how can you in a most appropriate and effective way chase the
people out of a country in order to clean it of ‘unwanted’ ones? The
most effective way to achieve this is to kill the leaders and then the
people will leave the country or the area you wish to ethnically
cleanse. And indeed since 2006 we observe a certain pattern in the
killing of the Aramean leaders, resulting in an exodus of the Indigenous
Aramean people of Aram-Nahrin, who also made known as “Assyrians” in
some media. It suffices to mention a few examples:
On 12th
of October 2006 the West- Aramean Syrian Orthodox Priest Paulus Iskandar
[2] was brutally slaughtered, and his body was cut in pieces,
in Mosul. On 6th of June 2007, the East- Aramean Chaldean
priest Raggied Aziz Gannie [3] was brutally killed in Mosul.
On 13th of March 2008 the East- Aramean Chaldean bishop Faraj
Rahho [4] was killed in Mosul. On 5th of April
2008 the West- Aramean Syrian Orthodox Priest Yousef Adel Abudi [5]
was killed in Baghdad.
Three
of the four spiritual leaders were killed in Mosul, not coincidently; it
rather was meant to physiologically demoralize our nation and cause them
to leave the area of their forefathers.
The
Aramean people, including “Assyrians” and Chaldeans, seem to have
understood the message
quite well. Since the Iraq-
war and in particular after the killing of the Aramean leaders, hundreds
of thousands of them have left Iraq for countries like Syria, Jordan and
the West. And with that, those who wish to ethnically cleanse
Aram-Nahrin of its original inhabitants, seem to be gradually succeeding
in their well-prepared Grand Plan.
Your
Excellency,
The
atrocities against our nation in Mosul since late September form an
indication to us that this was the last step, or perhaps one of the last
steps, which had to be carried out in the framework of the Grand Plan to
clean Mosul of its Aramean Indigenous nation.
Though
history clearly testifies that we are the original inhabitants of
Aram-Naharaim; that this part of the world bears our name; that our
nation contributed to world civilizations; that we bear with us an
antique and rich heritage which has been developed and preserved for
thousands of years, which is we believe not only our heritage but the
heritage of mankind as well; we have always reached forth the hand of
cooperation, friendship, brotherhood and peace to everybody in this
region, to those who are thirsty for these noble human values and
standards as well as to those who reject these standards.
The
contribution of the Aramean nation to world civilizations is
well-summarized by a world- renowned Eminent Oxford University Scholar
Professor Sebastian Brock, a specialist on Aramaic (Syriac) and Hebrew,
who said “Almost
all societies are dependent upon the use of writing, but very few
peoples realise that the great majority of the world’s scripts can be
traced back to a common ancestor, an alphabet invented in the Middle
East four thousands
years ago, which
was subsequently refined by the Phoenicians and the Aramaeans who spread
it throughout the known world. It is thus without doubt one of the
greatest gifts of the Aramean peoples to world culture.”
(Hidden Pearl volume I: Page 27) [6]
“…Nevertheless
it is undeniable that the simple Aramaic alphabet of 22 letters has had
the most extraordinary impact on the development of alphabetic writing
systems throughout the world. Indeed, it is very hard to imagine how
human culture and scientific learning could have progressed without (the
Aramaic language).” (Hidden Pearl volume I: Page 58)
[6]
If the
international community indeed cares about its own heritage and truly do
appreciates the greatest gifts the
Aramean peoples have given to world culture,
it should act immediately, before it is too late, to thwart the
plans of those whose goal seems to be ethnic cleansing of Iraq of its
ancient inhabitants, in this case the Mosul area.
In
order to preserve, maintain and promote the genuine Aramean heritage, to
defend their fundamental human rights in the lands of the forefathers,
and to do justice to the history, we wish to conclude this letter by
humbly requesting the United Nations in the following:
1. To
urge the Iraqi government to conduct an independent international
inquiry under the auspices of the United Nations to ensure transparency
and reliability on the atrocities which took place in Mosul.
2. To
bring the perpetrators of the atrocities against our nation before the
international court of justice.
3. Many
of the displaced Aramean Christians fear to return back to Mosul.
Therefore we ask the UN to assist the displaced Arameans and non-Arameans
back to their homes in Mosul and offer them a complete compensation,
including repairing their destroyed homes and damaged cultural or
spiritual buildings, and provide them with security guarantees to
facilitate a general feeling of safety.
4. To
put the Mosul area under UN protection until the Iraqi Government is
strong enough to provide the minimum security for the citizens of Mosul,
including Aramean Christians and others.
5. As
has been demonstrated throughout the past centuries, the Aramean people
are peaceful minded and prefer to live with others on the foundation of
respect, love and brotherhood. [7] However, to continue this
Aramean policy of peaceful cooperation, our people need assistance and
protection from the United Nations.
6. We
havewitnessed that the situation of the Indigenous Aramean people is
very fragile and that they can easily be neglected and marginalized, as
was demonstrated with the removal of article 50 of the Provincial
election law, a step which was also criticized by the UN envoy to Iraq
Mr. Steffan De Mistura.
For this
reason your Excellency, we ask you, in the framework of the General
Assembly Resolution 61/295 on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, to urge
the Iraqi Government to recognize our nation as the Indigenous Nation of
Iraq. In fact the Aramean nation is not even mentioned in the Iraqi
constitution.
The
last remark we wish to make to underscore the Aramean policy of peaceful
cooperation is repeating the words of the East- Aramean Chaldean bishop
Mgr. Paulus Faraj Raho, killed in
Mosul on 13th of March 2008, who said, “What
we know for sure is that we Christians are not enemies to anyone. In
other words, we don’t want to be enemies to anyone in order for this to
be taken as a pretext for others to attack us as their enemy. And if we
do have enemies, then we on our part, are not their enemies, and if they
choose to be our enemies….. we ask mercy for them … and those who want
to be foes to us, we don’t want to be their enemies”
[8]
Respectfully Yours;
|
Gabriel Sengo
Chairman
Arameans of Aram-Naharaim Organization |
Gabi Gallo
Chairman
Aramean Democratic Organization (ArDO) |
Aboud Gouriye
Chairman
Platform
Aram |
Footnotes:
[1]
http://www.iraqichristians.org/English/ArameansOrganisations_UN_Iraq_Help_10_5_2008.htm
[2]
http://www.aramnahrin.org/English/Priester_Iskandar_12_10_2006.htm
[3]
http://www.aramnahrin.org/English/MurderRagiedAzizGanie_3_6_2007.htm
[4]
http://www.iraqichristians.org/English/Funeral_Paulus_Faraj_Raho_14_3_2008.htm
[5]
http://www.iraqichristians.org/English/Funeral_Yusuf_Adel_Abudi_6_4_2008.htm
[6] The Hidden Pearl: Three
Thousands Years History, Faith and Culture of the Aramean People of
Mesopotamia:
http://www.aramnaharaim.org/English/film_arameans.htm Three
videotapes accompanied with three Volumes Encyclopedia
[7] This
was well summarized by the East- Aramean Chaldean bishop of Kerkuk, Mgr.
Louis Sako who in a statement issued an appeal on behalf of the
Christians of Mosul on 8th of October 2008 “The Christians
of Iraq are native to this place, and have nothing to do with the plots
in the country, nor do they know anything about what will happen in the
future. They want nothing other than adignified and peaceful life. They
want to cooperate with all for the purpose of building stability for
the good of the country and its citizens, as they have always done
throughout history”
[8]
http://www.iraqichristians.org/English/Paulus_Faraj_Raho_On_IraqWar_14_3_2008.htm |
