Gulan: Throughout history, many nations have been faced mass murdering and disasters including Armenians, Kurds, and Jews. In your opinion, how does the world compensate for the nations that have faced mass murdering?

Bengio: We cannot talk about the world as if it were an entity. You can talk about the United Nations as a body that could have punished the culprit but such a body is too weak to do so. The important thing is that the culprit state should take the responsibility and compensate the people who suffered genocide because of the deeds of that state. The “world” namely the international community should give moral support and backing which will help exert pressure on that country. Anyway no compensation can really compensate for the sufferings of millions of people.


Gulan: From the perspective of international law and regulations what is the importance of recognizing mass murdering of nations as genocide? To what extent is the recognition important for the next generations?

Bengio: The recognition of genocide should have had a very important moral value and should have played a deterrent for new states not to commit such a thing. Unfortunately, in the real world this does not happen. The best proof is the new genocides that have been taking place in the world even after the Shoa was recognized as genocide.

Gulan: Armenian and Jewish Mass murdering by Hitler were recognized as Genocide and both nations became independent states. To what extent was the recognition of their mass murdering as Genocide a factor for independency and establishment of Israel and Armenia states?

Bengio: I do not think that this recognition was a crucial factor in the establishment of Israel. What was important was the lesson which Jews themselves have drawn from the terrible experience and the decision not to let it happen again. When a country is independent it can defend much better its citizens and prevent another genocide. So the crucial thing for the establishment of the state is first of all the will of the people.

Gulan: Kurdish people have faced mass murdering different times. Halabja, a town of Kurdistan region in Iraq, has faced chemical bombardment. At the level of many European countries this mass murdering has been recognized as Genocide, and the issue is currently under discussion by European Parliament. It is said that the U.S. congress might also discuss the issue. In your opinion, why haven’t yet the crimes of Anfal and Chemical bombardment toward Kurdish people been recognized as Genocide?

Bengio: To my mind the answer is very simple: interests and politics. Most of world countries want to do business with Iraq and they do not want to jeopardize this possibility by granting such recognition to the Kurds even though the government of post-Saddam Iraq itself has recognized it as such. Why? Because if they do the conclusion might be that the Kurds should have the right to establish their own state in order to defend themselves from another genocide.

Gulan: After facing genocide, still the Kurds are under threat and their future is uncertain. To what extent will recognition of Genocide rescue Kurdish people from the current threats?

Bengio: As mentioned before the recognition itself is not important except for moral value. Otherwise it will not stop any government from perpetrating such crimes. The best example is Assad’s use of chemical weapon against his weakened people while the “world” is doing almost nothing against it.

Gulan: how far will the recognition of Kurdish mass murdering as Genocide become a factor for the establishment of Kurdistan state like Israel and Armenia? What do the Kurds have to do in order to have their own state?

Bengio: For the Kurds to have their own state they should first of all prepare the infrastructure at home, namely, preparing the ground culturally, economically, politically and militarily. The most important ingredient is a vision and the unity of the people and the different political parties.