World heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis once warned one of his opponents: “You can run, but you can’t hide.” This same warning now applies to the Turkish government and two of its major banks.
Last December, when three Armenian Americans filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit in U.S. Federal Court against the Republic of Turkey, the Central Bank, and Ziraat Bank, the Turkish government ridiculed the charges, claiming “sovereign immunity.”
The Armenian American plaintiffs were seeking $64 million in compensation for the confiscation of their properties in Adana, Turkey, in the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide. The plaintiffs were also demanding additional millions of dollars for the accrued rent and interest the U.S. government paid Turkey in the past 60 years for use of the strategic Incirlik Air Base, located on Armenian-owned land.
Since one of the first steps in filing a lawsuit is to serve a copy of the court documents to the defendants, the three Turkish entities concocted elaborate schemes to avoid receiving the legal papers in order to delay or obstruct the trial. As a result, the plaintiffs’ attorneys had to go to extraordinary lengths during the past nine months to deliver the court documents to the Turkish defendants.
Ironically, after making every effort to block the serving of court papers, the Central Bank and Ziraat Bank filed a motion on June 1, 2011, seeking the dismissal of the case, arguing they had not received the proper documents.
On Aug. 2, U.S. Federal Judge Dolly Gee rejected the Turkish request, asserting that the plaintiffs’ representatives “made several attempts to serve the Bank defendants at their addresses in New York City. After being repeatedly denied access to the buildings and, in one case, being misdirected as to Ziraat Bank’s actual location, the process servers left copies of the summonses and complaint with the building security guards. Plaintiffs’ counsel then mailed additional copies to the each of the Bank defendants at these same addresses.”
The judge ruled that the Republic of Turkey had been adequately served with legal documents and ordered the Turkish entities to present their pleading in court no later than Aug. 19.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys faced greater difficulties in serving the court documents to the Turkish authorities than to the New York offices of the two banks. On Jan. 26, 2011, the English and Turkish versions of the complaint were mailed to the Ministry of Justice in Ankara, as required by the Hague Convention. On March 1, Turkey informed the plaintiffs’ lawyers in writing its refusal to accept the court papers, claiming the lawsuit infringes Turkey’s “sovereignty and security.”
After exhausting all other channels, the plaintiffs’ lawyers submitted the court documents to the U.S. Department of State on April 14, asking the latter to present them officially to the Turkish government. On June 20, the State Department advised the plaintiffs that the documents were forwarded through diplomatic channels to the Republic of Turkey.
The American Embassy in Ankara transmitted the documents with a “diplomatic note,” warning the Turkish government that under U.S. law “a defendant in a lawsuit must file an answer to the complaint within 60 days from the date of notice or face the possibility of having judgment entered against it.” The U.S. Embassy strongly urged the Turkish Foreign Ministry to comply with the requirements of United States laws or face “a default judgment.”
On Aug. 29, after the mandated 60 days had expired and no response was received from Turkey, the attorneys for the Armenian American plaintiffs asked the Federal Court to enter a default judgment against the Turkish defendants.
Vatan newspaper reported last week that the two Turkish banks, alarmed by the serious prospect of losing a multi-million dollar lawsuit due to their failure to respond to the U.S. Federal Court, rushed to hire a lawyer and asked for more time until Sept. 19, 2011 to file a response.
Should the Turkish defendants not show up in court on Sept. 19, the federal judge could enter a default judgment and order that their assets in the U.S., up to the value of the judgment, be seized and turned over to the Armenian American plaintiffs.
The Turkish government can no longer hide from its responsibilities for the devastating damage caused to the Armenian people as a result of the genocide. It is high time for Turkey to acknowledge its long history of colossal criminal acts and make appropriate amends.
Harut Sassounian
About frigging time , the Turkish government face the REAL LAW !
I would not rule out one of these days some Armenians would file a class action against the Republic of Turkey and et. al. to seek justice.
Why they didn’t ask their property back instead of money?
Comparing to the amount of damages that these savage people inflicted on our National Heritage these amounts are “Peanuts” therefor I hope individuals accepting such small funds won’t have any effect on our rights to claim our lands, to me if you get paid for something it’s not yours anymore.
I’m sure Turkey is willing to pay million folds of such funds if we put aside the killings of 1.5 million Armenians.
I think if they claim the land; since US law is based on previous judgments; winning this case will pave the road for all similar cases to get our private and public lands back.
Osik:
Your are correct. However and unfortunately Turkey itself has to acknowledge that the land they possess is rightfully Armenian property. This ofcourse is alot harder than ‘getting paid for stolen land’ which is also difficult.
But I believe we are making progress here. Thanks to U.S. Law & efforts put forward by the plaintiffs & their attorneys. There will be more of these claims in the future.
Osik.. I agree with your logic.. absolutely.. Land is more valuable than the money in the long run… it would be absolutely ideal…
Turkey is definintely trying to run but there is a point in time, when they can’t run anymore and that time is approaching and is already started… it would have been beneficial for Turkey to fess up years ago and do what was right but they refused.. now their bill will be much higher and more painful.. hey… it was their decision to be inhumane, unresponsive, and the biggest denialists…
Gayane
I have some questions although I know answers will be rude:
1- Why do these people sue after so many years? Incirlik Air Base was built in 1951.
2- If the US court rules in favor of Turkey, will you still say the same things about the US Justice system. Will you accept their decision?
3- If compensation will include all the profits and interests, will the US government have to do the same to Native Americans. For example if a company made billions of dollars in a land stolen from Native Americans, should they return all of it with its interests.
Gayane,
Let’s you and I debate! Consider this a challenge. You ought not to have any problems, since you obviously know everything, and of course we Turks are nothing but cold-blooded denialist killers anyway, while your people have NEVER hurt a single soul and have always been the angelic victims of the mean, blood-thirsty, oppressive Turk (no mention ever, of course, of oppressions upon your people from other empires)! What say you?
Please, Gayane, do not demean yourself by responding to Robert.
Osik you are right. Money is nothing -regaining our land is everything. Imagine if they could get their land back and the U.S. could no longer have an air base there! Just imagine!
Papken Hartunian – from your mouth to God’s ear. I live for the day your words will come true
I am sorry Robert.. Until I know which one of you is posting on these pages as you know you played with our minds and hearts ther will be no you and I… sorry…. until you apologize to all of us for contineously insulting my ancestor’s memory by lying to us, you have no room to even address your comments to me…..
YOU need to stop referring us as if we are saying the regular Turks are cold-blooded killers..No one .. I REPEAT.. NO ONE on these pages ever said that ordinary Turks are cold -blooded murderers…however, we DID say that your ANCESTORS were INDEED all the things mentioned by you… fact is a fact.. please face it, embrace it, know it, and realize it… but I will say this though.. I never said I know EVERYTHING.. stop spreading lies yet again.. but i know this Robert.. I know this very well: YOU are a DENIALIST…no questions about it.. and I stand behind my word…… sorry Robert (Roberts… who knows which one is posting) for being upfront …..
Gayane
P.S. Robert.. I am sorry that you are a bit slow in comprehending alot of information on these pages but EVERY SINGLE question or a statement that you posed in your comment have been answered and answered with great details.. we are not playing broken radio.. please go find those posts and you will get your answers… stop wasting our time with the same questions you have answers to…
Mert– same goes to you…your questions are just repetition and every one of them were answered already.. i don’t get what you people are doing… do you enjoy typing the same questions over and over again hoping that one discussion group would be different than the other discussion group? the answers are all the same .. please … stop acting like you have no clue and you never read the answers to your questions… Lord….
Mert, my other compatriots may answer your 3 questions later on.
But I have a question for you: why the ‘I know answers will be rude:’ preamble ?
If you know the answers will be rude, why do you bother coming to AW and posting a question ?
Or are you attempting to prevent a vigorous response with that preamble ? (it won’t work).
Why do Turk posters constantly complain about AW or Armenian posters here, yet can’t seem to be able to stay away ?
I post regularly @TodaysZaman and @HurriyetDailyNews. Most of my posts get published by TZ. Most of my posts get flushed by HDN. Many (maybe most) of the posters there are viciously Anti-Armenian, Anti-Greek, and Anti-Kurd. I have been on the receiving end of personal hate-posts.
I don’t care. Comes with the territory. I say my piece, counter Anti-Armenian disinformation, then leave. Tomorrow is a new day.
Neither TZ, nor HDN, nor Turk posters there owe me any consideration and I don’t expect any.
I don’t understand why would you guys expect kid-glove treatment when you (generic you) post things that are hurtful or infuriating to readers here who are obviously mostly of Armenian descent (….ArmenianWeekly ?).
Try going to Haaretz or JerusalemPost and questioning the veracity of the Jewish Holocaust. How long before you (generic you) start getting threats from their readers, if you get published at all.
Well haji Bob,
You took all the answers right out of my mouth prtaining the natural characteristics of Turkish people. I say the debate is over. what say you?
well Jay, I take back everything bad I said to you. I thought you were an Anti-Armenian Denialist Turk posing as an Armenian (…there are a couple of those around here: very slick, hard to detect).
My mistake. I didn’t realize you are one of us. Different worldview, but one of us.
We are ONE.
No hard feeling ,Brother. Cary on, I always enjoyed reading your comments.
Oh.. my bad … that is what I thought of Jay as well Avery jan.. but the difference is: i thought Jay was anti-Armenian Armenian….so Jay no hard feelings I hope…sorry…
thank you for your response back to Robert.. that was great…
Avery jan– they come back to these pages because get no love from their own pages…they just can’t be away from us.. .I experienced the same thing as you… most of my posts do not get published on Harriett…. the denialists don’t see us whine……people like Robert and Mert and all the denialists alike love to whine about the smallest things and turn it into a high tide… but when it comes to the real problem and issue, like GENOCIDE they do everything to minimize it… what a sick world they live in…
Perouz jan- i hear you but can’t have Robert has his cake and eat it too.. he must be reminded over and over that he can’t be acting an irresponsible and insensitive individual with the descendents of those who were brutally murdered by his ancestors…it is just wrong.. wrong.. wrong..
Gayane
Time to make our own propaganda against Armenians who killed and murdered our Turkish and Kurdish people.
Time to show the world that certain Armenians try to manupulate instutions, governments and so on.
Those radical Armenians you seem to be so patriotic, why don’t you move to Armenia and try to file your propaganda lawsuit from there. I guess try to benefit through better manupulation opportunities, If you love Armenia so muchhhh move to Armenia..Mislead and wrong educated radicals.
Anadolu– your comment is laughable to say the least.. I am wondering what type of propaganda you will cook up this time….. go ahead and create your propaganda… lets see how fast the world will laugh at your so called propaganda against Armenians who killed and murdered your Turkish and Kurdish people..i know for a fact that you propaganda might include such blurbs of comparison: like oh well Armenian radicals fought back and killed Turks while in conflict with our barbaric ancestors who were in the spree of killing and wiping out an entire nation.. hmmm.. that is right… who would not have fought back… so I guess you have no plan ANADOLU.. because the world knows how manipulative and two faced Turkey is.. and how history speaks loud and clear.. every finger is pointed at Turkey for mass murdering an entire nation and not at ARmenians… nice try but cheap ploy…ain’t going to work…
and would not YOU want to bring us to Armenia knowing very well that Armenia has a very strong Diaspora and Turkey is afraid, very afraid of us…. of course you would want us to move back to our country… we don’t need you to tell us what to do.. We love and cherish and will protect our country at every cost..however, we have a goal to accomplish and until we do… we will continue to fight … be it from outside or within.. so hold on to your panties.. you ain’t done with the Diasporeans…..
Gayane
It is important to recognize that these lawsuits are a means and not an end in themselves…just as Genocide recognition is simply a means. At face value , this is about a few family who are fortunate to have the appropriate documentation for their stolen properties. We are supporting them and hoping for a favorable outcome. But this can not be only about a few families…. or many families for that mattter, receiving financial restitution.
These litigated examples bring light to not only stolen personal property, but a stolen homeland. This only has value if we are able to connect the dots in a national effort….just as “genocide recognition”means little if we are not able to resolve the full injustice.
This can never be simply about the Turks “apologizing” or being forced to pay a few million. I am thankful for these opportunities to serve as enablers but our vision must always remain on what our nation lost. These are stepping stones not end points,
True that Stepan… absolutely true… can’t stop there.. we have a lost nation to recover…
Gayane