Lest We Remember
By ANDREW FINKEL
A sculpture, the "Monument to Humanity," outside the city of Kars, on the Turkish-Armenian border. The statue was intended as a gesture of reconciliation between Turkey and Armenians, but it was dismantled on aesthetic grounds last year by order of the Turkish prime minister.Mehmet Aksoy/Associated PressA sculpture, the “Monument to Humanity,” outside the city of Kars, on the Turkish-Armenian border. The statue was intended as a gesture of reconciliation between Turkey and Armenians, but it was dismantled on aesthetic grounds last year by order of the Turkish prime minister.
ISTANBUL — The other day Taraf, a Turkish language newspaper for which I write, ran a quarter-page ad depicting a pomegranate with a deep slash and the legend: “Some wounds do not heal with time.” The pomegranate is a symbol of the Armenian people, and in fine print you could make out the endorsement of many prominent Turkish Armenians for a gathering in Istanbul’s Taksim Square. The ad didn’t bother to explain the purpose of the assembly, leaving the date and time — April 24, 19:15 — to speak for itself.
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