WATERTOWN, Mass. (A.W.) – On Aug. 10, Martin Essayan, a member of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation’s Board of Trustees, visited the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Archives Institute office at the Hairenik Association, located in Watertown.

Essayan was welcomed by ARF Archives Institute president Vatche Proodian, who discussed past and present efforts in preserving, organizing, and digitizing the collection. Also present at the meeting were Tatoul Sonentz Papazian and Jirayr Beugekian, who are also engaged in these efforts; Jan Avedissian, a member of the ARF Eastern U.S. Central Committee; Asbed Kotchikian, editor of the “Armenian Review”; Zaven Torikian, editor of Hairenik Weekly; and Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) member Dikran Kaligian.

Essayan was also received by the Armenian Relief Society’s (ARS) central office, as well as the editorial teams of the Armenian Weekly and Hairenik Weekly. Afterwards, he visited the Archives and viewed sample materials from the ARF collection and the Republic of Armenia collection.

In 2009, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation provided a grant of $50,000—and in 2008, $25,000—to the ARF Archives Institute.

Less than a year later, in late March-early April of 1909, a counter-revolution erupted in the Empire. During this turmoil, a systematic massacre took place in the city of Adana (in Cilicia), where 20-30 thousand innocent Armenians lost their lives. Eventually, the Constitutional movement was victorious and the Sultan was deposed.

Soon after the Adana massacre, negotiations started between the ARF and the CUP. These negotiations were concluded by an agreement of cooperation, which was signed by both parties in August 3rd of the same year.

This document, along with 40 others related to the constitutional movement, are published recently in “Niuter Hay Heghapokhagan Dashnaktsutyun Badmutian Hamar” (Documents of the ARF History), Volume VI, in Beirut Lebanon. This volume is available at the Hamazkayin Bookstore in Beirut, Lebanon, or the Sardarabad Bookstore in Glendale, California. This volume contains also 18 documents concerning the Adana massacres.

Our archives contain both the Armenian and the Turkish (Ottoman) texts of this agreement, which bear the consecutive call numbers 1716Kim-13 and 1716Kim-13a. Armen Garo and Vahan Papazian, from the ARF, and Dr. Nazim and Midhat Shukru (the third person’s signature is not legible) signed this agreement, which is displayed above.

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Institute Executive Director, Vatche Proodian, expressed his gratitude to the Foundation for the response to the grant request.

He thanked the Foundation’s Armenian section directors Martin Esayan and Zaven Yegavian for this new grant and added that just like the previous grant, the funds will be allocated toward digitizing the archives and their respective indices.

Proodian also added that the digitizing project is already underway.

The Supreme Judicial Council has dealt with this issue. This Council was created by the ARF 9th World Congress, convened in Yerevan in 1919. The Council was headed by Levon Thadeossian.

The decision of the ARF Supreme Judicial Council is kept in our archives and bears the call number 1615-7. It is a three page document in a very clear handwriting.

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Doc. 1615_7, P. 1

Doc. 1615_7, P. 2

Doc. 1615_7, P. 3

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