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Assyrians Protest in Melbourne, Australia
by David Chibo
Posted: Tuesday, March 20, 2001 12:16 pm CST

It was Wednesday, 28th February, 20001 and most of the participants had never taken part in a protest (tagleetha) before. Yet here they were assembling outside the Turkish Consulate on Albert Rd. in South Melbourne, Australia

The first protestors had begun assembling at 11am, and they waited for other Assyrians, from near and far to join their ranks, and prepare for the protest to come. They were here to protest the arrest of Father Yusuf Akbulut for affirming the Assyrian-Armenian and Greek Genocide of World War I.

A steady stream of Assyrians slowly assembled in the park opposite the Turkish Consulate, as the clock slowly approached 12pm. Meanwhile, the organisers were busy handing out placards and informing them of the protest’s guidelines.

Federal Australian police then arrived to oversee the event, and they talked to the organisers informing them of requests they had. “This is a democratic country, and you are all free, to peacefully protest outside the consulate”, a Federal police officer said calmly. Upon receiving word of the protest the Federal police had informed organisers that the Federal government, located in Canberra, was now fully aware of this protest as it had been formally registered and noted by them.

At 12pm the signal to start the protest was given as the organisers led the crowd across the road and in front of the Turkish Consulate. Then far in the distance Assyrian youth, who had “skipped” school on the day, could be seen approaching the Consulate. Numbering approximately 15, they crossed the road holding a long banner that was held in front by around 5 Assyrian youth. The homemade banner printed in bold letters, stated,” TURKEY – FREE ASSYRIAN PRIEST”.

Draped in Assyrian T-shirts, Assyrian caps, and holding homemade Assyrian flags in the air, they approached and raised the morale of the initial protestors as they moved in and positioned themselves in front of the Consulate.

Having been informed of only a group of 30 to 40 protestors, the police quickly called in further State police for additional support. The total crowd of 80 strong protesters then began the peaceful protest.

The Consulate having received word of the protest adopted their standard operating procedures and closed down the Consulate for the day, sending all workers home.

One of the protest’s organisers, Brian Berro, then picked up a megaphone and began a prepared oratory that informed the assembled protestors and gave pause to nearby Australian onlookers.

“We are here to protest, not against the Turkish people, but against the Turkish government and its policy of persecuting all those that are deemed to be different.” Whilst he talked many passing by were given a pamphlet detailing the plight of Father Yusuf Akbulut. The oratory was then interrupted by slogans as the emotion charged crowd yelled their demands to the Consulate. “Turkey - Free Father Yusuf!” and “Turkey - Recognise the Assyrian Genocide!”, were the favourites on the day.

The protestor’s energy was self-evident as an emotion-charged atmosphere was projected by many of the Assyrian youth in attendance. When asked about his homemade flag, one of the protestors Sargon Warda made the following comment, “I phoned a flag maker the other night, and asked him to make me an Assyrian flag. He said he only had the Syrian flag on his database. I told him that wasn’t good enough, and hung up. So I decided to make my own.”

Many youth showed remarkable initiative and using markers, which they had brought, from home, they turned the prepared signs around and marked them with words such as, “Honk for support”. Being a busy intersection many passing motorists provided the crowd with the requested audible support. Having blocked the Turkish Embassy’s entrances the youth peacefully allowed all people leaving the car park to leave provided they honked their horn for support, and took a copy of a pamphlet detailing the Father Yusuf case. Pulling out some tape Assyrian youth then decided to leave their mark on the Consulate by sticking pamphlets all over the Consulate’s walls, as bemused police officers looked on.

“This is a peaceful, non-violent protest”, was the word the organisers repeated to the waiting crowd. As an under-cover policeman approached the organisers, and introduced himself. He thanked the organisers for controlling and guiding the peaceful protest, and requested further information regarding the Father Yusuf case. Printed news articles from www.assyrian-genocide.org were then handed to him, as he showed a genuine interest in the case and requested further information.

Mr. Berro then continued, “Assyrians have been persecuted for simply being Assyrian, speaking a distinct language and being culturally and linguistically different.” The crowd listened on as Brian Berro requested that a Consular official approach the organisers and receive an official protest letter from Melbourne’s Assyrian community. The Turkish Consular officials were nowhere to be seen, even after repeated attempts to have them greet the organisers. The protest organisers then approached the police officers guarding the entrance and gave them the community’s protest letter, who promised to hand it to the Turkish Consulate.

After two and a half hours of protesting, one of the protest’s key organisers, Mr. Brian Berro, then shouted the following words into the megaphone, explaining to all on-lookers the reason why the Assyrian community of Melbourne, had finally awoken and expressed themselves in such an audible manner. “Our protest, here today, is to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. Our protest, here today, is to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. Our protest, here today, is to defend those who cannot defend themselves.”

With these words the Assyrian protestors applauded Mr. Berro, who then thanked them for their attendance and dedication to this human rights cause. Then as quickly as they had come they departed, packing up their banners and folding their Assyrian flags, they left the Turkish Consulate and returned to their homes.

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