What mistake did Armen PM Ohannes Kachaznuni on 1923!
Introduction
1923, Hovhannes Kajaznuni (also spelled Katchaznouni), the first Prime Minister of Armenia, made a significant and controversial statement that many consider a mistake.
At the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Party convention in Bucharest, Kajaznuni presented a report titled “Dashnaktsutyun Has Nothing More to Do”.
This report contained several key points that were seen as problematic
Acceptance of Soviet rule
Kajaznuni called for the party to support Soviet Armenia, a stance that was in stark contrast to the position of other Armenian political parties in exile at the time.
Criticism of the ARF
He provided a scathing critique of his own political party, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, which had dominated the politics of the first Armenian Republic.
Acknowledgment of past errors
Kajaznuni admitted to the “dense atmosphere of illusion” that Armenian leaders had created, particularly regarding their territorial ambitions and misunderstanding of international support.
Call for party dissolution
Perhaps most controversially, he suggested that the Dashnaktsutyun (ARF) should “decisively end its existence” because “there is no work for the Party”.
Kajaznuni’s blunt assessment and willingness to accept the new political reality were seen by many as defeatist and even treasonous. His report drew immediate rebuke from the party and led to his marginalization in Armenian political circles.
Conclusion
It’s important to note that while Kajaznuni’s statement has been used by some to deny the Armenian genocide, he actually referred directly to the massacres and “deportation or extermination of the Ottoman Armenians” in his report. The misuse of his words by genocide deniers is considered a distortion of his actual views.
