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Armenian-Americans sue for century-old losses
 [Al Arabiya Latest] Lawyers for two Armenian men have sued Turkey and two of its major banks, claiming they and others were victims of genocide and seeking what could amount to hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.While I do sympathize, I think they make statutes of limitations for this sort of thing. The lawsuit, filed on Thursday in U.S. District Court in California, names the Republic of Turkey, The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey and T.C. Ziraat Bankasi as defendants. The suit seeks class action status on behalf of all Armenians and Turkish citizens "who were deprived of their citizenship, brutally deported, (and) had their property seized" by the Turkish government. If this works the remnants of the Paleologues will be filing suit next. Los Angeles attorney Brian Kabateck, who filed the suit on behalf of L.A. resident Garbis Daoyan and Queens, New York resident Hrayr Turabian, said he believes this is the first lawsuit dealing with the Armenian genocide that names the Turkish government as a defendant. Lawyers were seeking class-action status for the suit, a process that attorney Brian Kabateck said could take as long as three years. "We are rolling up our sleeves and are going forward," said Brian Kabateck. "If this flies we'll be rolling in dough. All those Armenian descendants will get a few bucks, but I'm lookin' at a half acre house and a trophy wife!" The lawsuit seeks compensation for land, buildings and businesses allegedly seized from Armenians along with bank deposits and property, including priceless religious and other artifacts, some of which are now housed in museums in Turkey. "All of the lawyers involved have relatives who perished or fled the Armenian genocide, which gives it a special poignancy for us," said the attorney, Mark Geragos. I remember him. He defended Scott Peterson and then Michael Jackson fired him. The lawsuit claims more than a million Armenians were killed in forced marches, concentration camps and massacres "perpetrated, assisted and condoned" by Turkish officials and armed forces. It was the prototype for the Holocaust... Also named in the lawsuit were the Central Bank of Turkey and T.C., Ziraat Bankasi, the largest and oldest Turkish bank with origins dating back to the 1860s. The lawsuit claims the government of Turkey agreed to administer the property collect rents and sale proceeds from the seized assets and deposit the receipts in trust accounts until the property could be restored to owners. Instead, the government has "withheld the property and any income derived from such property," the lawsuit said. That was The Treaty of Sevres. The Turks signed it, then a few years later repudiated it, and it was replaced by the Treaty of Lausanne. Sounds like it's a matter for the League of Nations, which seems to have acquiesced, since it takes a minimum of two to treaty. A message left with the Turkish Consul General's office in Los Angeles was not immediately returned. After-hours e-mails seeking comment from both banks were not immediately returned. Lawyers for the plaintiffs believe records of the properties and profits still exist, and they are seeking an accounting that could reach billions of dollars. 30 percent of billions is big bux indeed... Geragos said the biggest issue in Armenian communities is seeking recognition for the ethnic bloodshed that allegedly claimed the lives of as many as 1.5 million Armenians between 1915 and 1919. The bloodshed's a matter of record, regardless of what the Turks say. Posted by: Fred 2010-08-01 |
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