On Tuesday, 3 November, millions of U.S. citizen will exercise their freedom at the voting polls and elect their candidates for the local, state, and Congressional seats.  Likewise, Assyrian-Americans will have an opportunity to influence their local and national agenda by electing political candidates who have demonstrated their interest in the politics of the Middle East with an emphasis on the plights of the Assyrians and Christians in that region.  This week ZENDA lists the names of the candidates whom we believe will strengthen the voice of the Assyrian community and the Christian minorities from the Middle East in local and national politics.  Out list is limited to the States and Congressional Districts with a significant population of Assyrians.  We have been closely following the '98 Election candidates, their platforms, and opinions with respect to the political developments in the Middle East.  It must be noted that our endorsements are not based on party affiliation, rather on past voting records toward a favorable legislation and Congressional initiatives, candidates' ethnic background, and a desire to assist Assyrians and the Christians in the Middle East.

If you are a ZENDA reader in the United States and are registered to vote please review this list carefully and on Tuesday join thousands of other Assyrians in affecting the political process in your hometown, State and Washington D.C.

ZENDA'S 1998 U.S. Elections Endorsements:

Arizona
    House of Representatives
        District 2                                     Ed Pastor
        District 6                                     J.D. Hayworth
California
    U.S. Senate                                     Barbara Boxer
    House of Representatives
        District 4                                     John Doolittle
        District 5                                     Robert Matsui
        District 6                                     Lynn Woolsey
        District 7                                     George Miller
        District 8                                     Nancy Pelosi
        District 9                                     George Radanovich
        District 11                                   Richard Pombo
        District 13                                   Pete Stark
        District 14                                   Anna Eshoo
        District 16                                   Zoe Lofgren
        District 17                                   Sam Farr
        District 18                                   Gary Condit
        District 20                                   Calvin Dooley
        District 21                                   William Thomas
        District 22                                   Lois Capps
        District 23                                   Elton Gallegly
        District 24                                   Brad Sherman
        District 25                                   Howard McKeon
        District 27                                   James Rogan
        District 28                                   David Dreier
        District 29                                   Henry Waxman
        District 30                                   Xavier Becerra
        District 31                                  Matthew "Marty" Martinez
        District 32                                   Julian Dixon
        District 33                                   Lucille Roybal-Allard
        District 35                                   Maxine Waters
        District 37                                   Juanita McDonald
        District 38                                   Steve Horn
        District 39                                   Edward Royce
        District 41                                  Eileen Ansari
        District 42                                  Elia Pirozzi
        District 44                                   Mary Bono
        District 47                                   Christopher Cox
        District 49                                   Brian Bilbray
        District 50                                   Bob Filner
        District 51                                   Randy Cunningham
        District 52                                   Duncan Hunter
    Mayor for the City of San Jose         Ron Gonzales

Connecticut
    U.S. Senate                                    Christopher Dodd
    State Representatives
        District 74                                 Michael Jarjura
        District 78                                  William Hamzy
    House of Representatives
        District 2                                    Sam Gejdensen
        District 3                                    Rosa DeLauro
        District 4                                    Christopher Shays
        District 6                                    Nancy Johnson
District of Columbia (Washington)
        House of Representatives            Eleanor Holmes Norton
Florida
    State Representative (District 12)     George Crady
    House of Representatives
        District 3                                    Corrine Brown
        District 8                                    Bill McCollum
        District 9                                    Michael Bilirakis
        District 18                                  Illeana Ros-Lehtinen
        District 21                                  Lincoln Diaz-Balart
Illinois
    U.S. Senate                                    Carol Moseley-Braun
    House of Representatives
        District 1                                     Bobby Rush
        District 3                                     William Lipinski
        District 4                                     Luis Gutierrez
        District 5                                     Rod R. Blagojevich
        District 7                                     Danny Davis
        District 10                                   John Edward Porter
        District 11                                   Gerald Weller
        District 12                                   Jerry Costello
        District 17                                   Lane Evans
        District 18                                   Ray LaHood
Indiana
   House of Representatives
        District 1                                     Peter Visclosky
        District 4                                     Mark Souder
Massachusettes
    House of Representatives
        District 1                                     John Olver
        District 2                                     Richard Neal
        District 3                                     James McGovern
        District 4                                     Barney Frank
        District 5                                     Martin Meehan
        District 6                                     John Tierney
        District 7                                     Edward Markey
        District 9                                     Joe Moakley
        District 10                                  William Delahun
Maine
    House of Representatives
        District 2                                     John Elias Baldacci

Michigan
    House of Representatives
        District 1                                     Bart Stupak
        District 2                                     Peter Hoekstra
        District 4                                     Dave Camp
        District 5                                     James Barcia
        District 6                                     Fred Upton
        District 7                                     Nick Smith
        District 8                                     Debbie Stabenow
        District 9                                     Dale Kildee
        District 10                                   David Bonior
        District 11                                   Joe Knollenberg
        District 12                                  Leslie Touma
        District 13                                   Lynn Rivers
        District 14                                   John Conyers
        District 15                                  Carolyn Kilpatrick
        District 16                                  John Dingell
New Hampshire
    U.S. Senate                                    Judd Gregg
    House of Representatives
        District 1                                    John E. Sununu
        District 2                                    Charles Bass
New Jersey
    House of Representatives
        District 1                                     Robert Andrews
        District 2                                     Frank LoBiondo
        District 4                                     Chris Smith
        District 5                                     Marge Roukema
        District 6                                     Frank Pallone
        District 7                                     Bob Franks
        District 8                                     William Pascrell
        District 9                                     Steven Rothman
        District 10                                   Donald Payne
        District 11                                   Rodney  Frelinghuysen
        District 12                                   Mike Pappas
        District 13                                   Robert Menendez
New York
    U.S. Senate                                    Alfonse D'Amato
    House of Representatives
        District 2                                     Rick Lazio
        District 5                                     Gary Ackerman
        District 10                                   Edolphus Towns
        District 11                                   Major Owens
        District 12                                   Nydia Velazquez
        District 14                                   Carolyn Maloney
        District 15                                   Charles Rangel
        District 16                                   Jose Serrano
        District 17                                   Eliot Engel
        District 18                                   Nita Lowey
        District 19                                   Sue Kelly
        District 20                                   Benjamin Gilman
        District 21                                   Michael McNulty
        District 23                                   Sherwood Boehlert
        District 24                                   John McHugh
        District 25                                   James Walsh
        District 26                                   Maurice Hinchey

New Mexico
    House of Representatives
        Distrcit 1                                     Phillip Maloof
Ohio
    House of Representatives
        District 3                                     Tony Hall
        District 10                                   Dennis Kucinich
        District 13                                   Sherrod Brown
        District 18                                   Robert Ney
Texas
    House of Representatives
        District 4                                     Ralph Hall
        District 10                                   Lloyd Doggett
        District 14                                   Ron Paul
Wisconsin
    U.S. Senate                                     Russell Feingold
    House of Representatives
        District 1                                     Lydia Spottswood
        District 4                                     Gerald Kleczka
        District 7                                     David Obey
        District 9                                     James Sensenbrenner

ZENDA believes that the above candidates will support any legislation that can bring to public attention the Assyrian politics in America and abroad.  We urge you to support them.  If your Congressional District is not represented in the above list please contact ZENDA to receive our endorsement for your State and Congressional Representatives.  Your vote does matter and will help Assyrian national and international political and religious leaders in impacting the U.S. policy makers' decisions into the next century.

Wilfred Alkhas
Publisher

After weeks of refusal to publish the final statement of the Barzani-Talabani Agreement in September the following document finally reached our ZENDA offices in California via the representatives of the Assyrian Democratic Organization in Europe. The details of this agreement are still kept confidential by the Kurdish parties.

Reaffirmation of Previous Achievements

On behalf of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), we thank Secretary Albright and the US government for facilitating a series of amicable and productive meetings here in Washington over the past several days. We appreciate their efforts in helping to bring us back together and to assist us in creating a framework for future cooperation. The meetings have been a major step forward towards a full and lasting reconciliation, which will provide new hope to the Kurds, Turkomen, and Assyrians and Chaldeans of the Iraqi Kurdistan region of Iraq.  Both parties also welcome the continuing engagement of the governments of Turkey and the United Kingdom in the peace and reconciliation process. We wish to recognize the irreplaceable role our separate consultations in Ankara and London played in making these talks a
success.

In Washington, we have discussed ways to improve the regional administration of the three northern provinces and to settle long-standing political differences within the context of the Ankara Accords of October 1996. We have reached several important areas of agreement on how to implement those accords.  We affirm the territorial integrity and unity of Iraq. The three northern provinces of Dohuk, Irbil and Sulemaniyah are part of the Iraqi state. Both the KDP and the PUK unequivocally accept the
recognized international boundaries of Iraq. Both parties are committed to preventing violations of the borders by terrorists or others.

Both parties will endeavor to create a united, pluralistic, and democratic Iraq that would ensure the political and human rights of Kurdish people in Iraq and of all Iraqis on a political basis decided by all the Iraqi people. Both parties aspire that Iraq be reformed on a federative basis that would maintain the nation's unity and territorial integrity. We understand that the U.S. respects such aspirations for all the Iraqi people.

Both parties condemn internal fighting and pledge to refrain from resorting to violence to settle differences or seeking outside intervention against each other. We will endeavor to bring to justice those who violate the peace, whatever their political affiliation or motivation.

Both parties also agree that Iraq must comply with all relevant UN Security Council resolutions, including the human rights provisions of Resolution 688.

To help ensure a peaceful environment for reconciliation, we will intensify our arrangements to respect the cease fire, facilitate the free movement of citizens and refrain from negative press statements.

Transition Phase

We have agreed to enhance the Higher Coordination Committee (HCC) to ensure that the humanitarian requirements of the people of the Iraqi Kurdistan region are met and their human and political rights are
fulfilled. The decisions of the HCC will be by the unanimous consent of its members.  The HCC will prepare for a full reconciliation between the parties, including normalizing the situation in Irbil, Sulemaniyah and Dohuk; re-establishing a unified administration and assembly based on the results of the 1992 elections; providing exclusive control of all revenues to the regional administration; and organizing new regional elections.

The HCC will enhance coordination and cooperation among local public service ministries that serve the needs of the people throughout the Iraqi Kurdistan region. The patties will ensure that these ministries
receive adequate revenue for their operation. The KDP acknowledges that, revenue differences will require a steady flow of funds for humanitarian services from the current KDP area to the current PUK
area.  The HCC will establish a process to help repatriate everyone who had to leave their homes in the three northern provinces as a result of the prior conflict between the parties, and to restore their property
or compensate them for their losses.

The HCC will ensure that both parties cooperate to prevent violations of the Turkish and Iranian borders. It will establish reasonable screening procedures to control the flow of people across these borders and prohibit the movement of terrorists. Both parties, working with the HCC, will deny sanctuary to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) throughout the Iraqi Kurdistan region . They will ensure that there are no PKK bases within this area. They will prevent the PKK from destabilizing and undermining the peace or from violating the Turkish border.  The HCC will endeavor to form an interim joint regional government within the next three months to be ratified by the regional assembly.

Unified Administration

Within three months of its re-formation, the Assembly will meet at its building in Irbil, with subsequent meetings there or in Sulemaniyah or Dohuk. The members of the this interim assembly will be those
individuals who were elected to the parliament in 1992.  The first meeting of the interim assembly will be within three months.  After the assembly is established, it must authorize all subsequent decisions of the HCC and/or the interim regional government.

The interim assembly may decide to add additional functions to the operations of the HCC, including unifying relations with the international community. To provide a safeguard for regional elections and to help normalize the status of Irbil, Dohuk and Sulemaniyah, the HCC and the assembly may establish a joint PUK-KDP-Turkomen-Assyrian security force. The new regional government may subsequently choose to take further measures to unify peshmerga (militia) command structures.  After the regional elections described below, the interim assembly will be replaced by a new regional assembly. This regional assembly will form a new regional government based on the voting strength of
each party in the assembly.

When the regional government has been formed, the HCC will be dissolved automatically. The term of the regional assembly, the regional government will be three years.

Revenue Sharing

Until the new interim joint regional government is established, a steady flow of funds for public service ministries will be directed from the current KDP area into the current PUK area, due to revenue
differences. The HCC, in consultation with the existing ministries of taxation and finance, is responsible for the apportionment of revenues throughout the region.  When the interim joint government is established, it will become responsible for the collection and distribution of all revenues.  After the election of a new regional assembly, a single Ministry of Revenue and Taxation will have exclusive responsibility for collecting all revenues, including taxes and customs duties. The funds collected will be at the disposal of the regional government for uses authorized by the regional assembly.

Status of Irbil, Dohuk and Sulemaniyah

The interim assembly and the HCC will address the normalization of Irbi1, Dohuk, Sulemaniyah and other cities. The HCC may call on international mediation regarding this issue, if it deems it expedient.  The status of these cities must be normalized to a sufficient degree that free and fair elections can be held.

Elections

The interim assembly and the HCC will be responsible for organizing free and fair elections for a new regional assembly, to take place no later than six months after the formation of the interim assembly.
The composition of the new regional assembly will be based on the best available statistical data on the population of the three northern governorates and the distribution of ethnic and religious groups
there. Seats will be set aside for the Kurdish, Turkomen, and Assyrian and Chaldean communities.  If possible, the interim assembly and the HCC, working with the international community, will conduct a census of the area in order to establish an electoral register. If international assistance is not available in time, the interim assembly and the HCC will conduct a census on their own, or making reference to existing data - they will construct a best estimate of the population in consultation with outside experts.
The interim assembly and the HCC will also invite international election monitors to assist both in the election itself and in training local monitors...

Jalal Talabani
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.

Massoud Barzani
Kurdistan Democratic Party

Witness: C. David Welsh
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Near East Affairs Bureau
Department of State, Washington D.C.
Washington D.C. September 17, 1998

On or before:

• October 1: The KDP begins to extend appropriate financial assistance on monthly basis to the public service ministries in the PUK areas.
• October 15: Timeline for repatriation of persons displaced by the former conflict. Agreement on restoration of property or compensation by responsible parties.
• Beginning November: Joint consultations with the Government of Turkey .
• November 1: Coordination and Cooperation of humanitarian ministries complete.  Revenues contributed by KDP to the ministries flowing from KDP areas to PUK areas.
• November 15: Progress report on repatriation, unification of ministries and revenue sharing.
• January I: First meeting of the interim assembly. Interim Joint Government establishes a plan to normalize Irbil, Dohuk and Sulemaniyah.

  April I: Interim Joint Government establishes a plan for the organization of elections.

The text of the Agreement was provided by the Assyrian Democratic Organization News Watch (European Section)

(ZNPR: Jerusalem)  Jordanian opposition parties have demanded that the Jordanian government impose a law preventing Greek Orthodox-held lands in Jerusalem and elsewhere from being sold to Israelis. The Jerusalem Greek Orthodox Patriarchate is still under Jordanian jurisdiction. In a statement to the Jordanian government, the  opposition representatives said they had seen documents that proved that the Greek Patriarch in Jerusalem has been selling Church properties to the Israelis.

Palestinian Review
October 16, 1998

(ZNCW:  Vatican) On 19 November Pope John Paul II addressed his thanks in a telegram to the outgoing Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians, Ignatius Anthony II Hayek, at the end of his reign for his service to the Syrian Church of Antioch.

"At this time when I accommodate the ecclesiastical request for communion by the new patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians," wrote the Holy Father, "I wish to express to you my deep recognition for your service to the Church which you rendered, over many years, like Peter as head of the Syrian Catholic
Church "Sui iuris", by undertaking this great burden for the strengthening of the flock entrusted to you in the Middle East and in the countries of the diaspora."

The Holy Father separately sent a reply to the "ecclesiastical request for communion" addressed to him by the newly-elected Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians, Ignatius Moussa Ier Daoud, following his election. The new Patriarch was elected according to canonical standards' on October 13 by the
Synod of the Syrian-Catholics Bishops. "I welcome with all my heart your request for ecclesiastical communion," wrote the pope. "I am certain," he said, "that with your brothers, the synodal Fathers of the Patriarchate of Antioch of the Syrians, Your Beatitude will be able to guide the Church entrusted to his care on the path of the Gospel, lived, celebrated, and proclaimed with confidence."

"Congratulations for your efforts and wish you good luck in your new office and website. GOD's blessings and your fantastic work of art and your humanitarian efforts shall be rewarded. I will keep you in my prayers."

Sarra N Bet Guriel
Loma Linda, California

Dr. Mariam Doreen Joseph
Sydney, Australia

Responses to Dr. Joseph's article are published in this week's SURFERS CORNER with Dr. Joseph's permission.

I wonder if Mr. Oushana may have been better able to produce a better representation of the Assyrian Martyrs Day commemoration, using whatever resources he may have acquired and may be safekeeping for some future and better time!

Since Mr. Oushana's address is in San Jose, I would expect that he would acknowledge the fact that the AAA of San Jose has not fallen short of doing just what he suggests it to do, that is in his own words "to promote Assyrian culture, history and language".  Anyone living in the San Jose Bay area could not deny the fact that the AAA of San Jose does just that and does it consistently and in the best quality and quantity I may add.

Mr. Oushana seems to be playing back an old broken record when he mentions that the 'AAA of San Jose consistently brings a Persian singing band to its parties', how many occurrence can he numerate of such event? and What would he had done had he been involved in organizing fund-raising events.    I wonder if he has never attended any non-Assyrian events on his own, along with others, as many who have mentioned this event themselves are seen more often at non-Assyrian events than Assyrian
events.

My last comment is with regards to Mr. Oushana's agreement with one of my statements, he actually is not in agreement, as he has mis-interpreted the meaning of my statement and has tailored it to fit his interpretation of it.

It is time to contribute and it is time to put aside baseless personal and negative views, if we are sincere about our love for our nation.

Esha Tamras
San Jose,CA

"I would like to make some comments on the letter written by Malpana Hirmis Aboona in the previous issue of Zenda.  My comments relate to the following paragraph in Raabi Aboona’s letter: 'If we compare the followers of the Church of the East with that of other sects of our Assyrian nation (e.g. the Chaldeans and Syriacs) we can agree that the follower of the church of the east have no past experience in the field of politics. As a mater of fact they never experienced modern politics with all its schools of thought.'

By reading the above paragraph I immediately recalled my conversation with Raabi Ninos Aho (a prominent Assyrian Nationalist from Syria and a member of Syrian Orthodox Church) a few years ago. He told me that one of the major problems of our nation is that  different branches of our nation have been very isolated and unaware of each others history and accomplishments. He gave me an example of how at the end of the 19th century Assyrian national movement in its modern form was formed in Urmi  and Tur-Abdin independently and each group had no idea about the other group. Here again Raabi Aboona’s comments clearly confirms that even if he is a prominent scholar from the Chaldean branch of our nation, he is not well aware of the developments and history of his nation that belong to other branches. I would like to show that the assertion that the followers of the Church of the East (which includes majority of Assyrians from Iran) have no past experience in the field of politics is wrong. In contrary the political awareness among Assyrians developed early in 19th century (at least in the province of Urmi and Salamas) and even it was much advanced and sophisticated than its counterpart in the neighboring ethnic groups.

1.  Influenced by revolutionary and nationalistic ideas of Russian, Georgian, and Armenian intellectuals, Assyrian intellectuals of Urmi and Salamas, developed a nationalistic and secular agenda and ideology early in 19th century. The Assyrian Manifesto of Urmi (which calls for the creation of a modern Assyrian nation) probably is one of the oldest documents of ethnic minorities in the region. To the best of my knowledge other ethnic groups such as Kurds only developed such ideas fifty years later and mostly during WWII which led to the establishment of nationalist movements among them in recent years.
2.  If one reads the “Kokhva” magazine published early in this century by Martyr Raabi Youkhanan Mooshi in Urmi, one would clearly get the impression that Assyrians were developing a sophisticated national agenda and that they were well aware of political developments surrounding them.
3.  Assyrians early in this century established political parties. The oldest known Assyrian political party, The Assyrian Socialist Party,  was established by Martyr Freidoon Atooraya of Charbash, Urmi. According to Melta magazine (an Assyrian political magazine published in Russia), this party had grown vastly especially among Assyrian emigrants to former Soviet states. Majority of leaders of this party had to move to Russia where they were harshly persecuted and killed by Stalinist policies of former Soviet government. According to Prof. Gabriel Yonan (private conversation) the elimination of Assyrian intellectuals that had migrated to Russia had a very negative role in the development of Assyrian national movement.
4.  The Assyrians were also involved in local politics alongside with their neighbors since 19th century. According to my research the Assyrian bishop of Church of the East of Ardishai (an Assyrian town south of Urmi) in the second half of 19th century had a great influence on Shah of Iran, and the Shah would consult him about local politics in many occasions. Unfortunately this great man was assassinated by Kurds  on his way to Qodchanis to meet the Assyrian Patriarch of the Church of the East. There are also a lot of evidence of Assyrian involvement in Constitutional revolution of Iran which lead to a limited democratization of Iranian society early in this century. The Assyrians were also one of the first ethnic groups in Iran to join the left socialist movement. The first page of the history of Communist party in Iran starts with a phrase that the first party cells were created among Assyrians and Armenians of Urmi and Salamas early in 20th century. One of the master minds of Iranian left movement was Prof. Aprim Ashuri an economist and a Ph.D. graduate of Cambridge University. The Azari National Movement in Iran also owes a lot to Assyrians. Thousands  of Assyrians during WWII joined the Azari Democratic Party and asked for land reforms, and elimination of the feudal system of Iran. Hoping that such reforms will benefit Assyrians in Iranian Azerbaijan as well. Raabi Daniel Uooshiya was a learned and educated Assyrian and was a member of central committee of this party. He was hanged by mobs in one the main streets of Urmi in 1945.

I only mentions a few examples to show that at least in a sub branch of the Church of East, i.e. Urmi and Salamas districts, the Assyrians developed enough sophistication in their understanding of politics and in their national agenda and ideology (I did not mentioned other branches of our nation because I am not familiar with their history in detail). While this process started in the second half of the 19th century and even was much ahead in development compared to neighboring ethnic groups, it interrupted tragically by the Assyrian Holocaust during WWI and it did not get the opportunity to evolve naturally due to sever oppression. Remember that majority of Assyrian intellectuals  were either murdered or assassinated in Urmi (Examples: Raabi Youkhanan Mooshi, Raabi Israel, Mar Toma Audo, Mar Benyamin Shimoun) or in Russia (Example: Freidoon Atooraya) which would significantly delay the emergence of the solid body of political ideologists for a small nation such as ours.

What we read in Raabi Aboona’s letter and what I just wrote clearly indicate that we need a lot of work to educate ourselves about the history of our nation especially its modern history in the past two centuries. We need to know everything in detail about all our communities and its various branches. All these hopefully will lead to a solid national ideology that will prepare us to go forward in 21st century and to compensate for all the lost opportunities that we had in the past."

Tony Khoshaba
Chicago, Illinois

Kuwait City in the fall of 1989, a year before the Persian Gulf War begins, is the setting for Six Faces, a new novel by David Hailstone.  The story develops a friendship between two American expatriates and former Marines living in Kuwait.

One has just arrived to teach at an international high school, while the other is married to an Assyrian woman and has called Kuwait City his home for many years.

A partnership is formed between the two in which the older man shows the new guy in town how to win big money shooting craps in private games. Always using the betting percentages to their advantage, the men are consistent winners.

During this time, the younger man falls in love with the Australian ambassador's daughter and they plan to marry.

When Iraq invades Kuwait in August, 1990, the men are trapped in the human shield drama, then interrogated and abused. They scramble to find a way to safety. Just as the Allied Forces are on the verge of invading the city, the two men are forced into setting up a private game for a gang of marauders. After teaching them how to play craps, the men work their way into this once-in-a-lifetime game where millions of dollars worth of jewelry, paintings and artifacts stolen during the occupation of Kuwait City, are on the line.

The dramatic outcome of the game and their planned retribution against their oppressors bring the story to its exciting conclusion.

With intrigue, romance, humor and pathos, Six Faces takes the reader on a grand adventure. David Hailstone's variety of international characters come alive in this fictional account of a very real time in our history and of the people caught up in one of the most dangerous dramas of our day.

The Ashurbanipal Library in Chicago contributed to the research for the story.

For Ordering Information Click Here.

"After reading this wonderful email from our sister Mariam I remembered reading
this and thought it would add to what Mariam.

You might enjoy reading the statement of Daniel Webster (1782-1852). 'It is wise occasionally to recur to the sentiments and to the character of those from whom we are descended. Men who are regardless of their ancestry and their posterity are very apt to be regardless of themselves....The contemplation of our ancestors and of our descendants ought ever to be within the group of our thoughts and our affections. The past belongs to us by affectionate retrospect, while the future belongs to us no less by
affectionate anticipation of those who are to come after us. And then only do we do ourselves justice when we are true to the blood we inherit, and true to those whom we have been the means of transmitting that blood.'

We must ever be thoughtful of the generations of Assyrians to come."

Don't take me wrong, I am not bashing our churches or their leaders. What I am saying is the church has a role to play in our society.. Politics has a bigger role to play if we want to have a home and a country that we can be proud of.  Keep your voice louder Doctor..."

What I didn’t understand is what you mean exactly by (Kurdistan), because I can think of many meanings."

AAC = Ancient Assyrian Church of the East
ACE = Assyrian Church of the East
CCC = Chaldean Catholic Church
MCC= Maronite Catholic Church
MOC = Malankara Orthodox Church
SCC = Syrian Catholic Church of Antioch
SKC = Syrian Knanaya Church
SOC = Syrian Orthodox Church

BC (750)

The earliest Assyrian reference to rice (or Akkadian kurangu) is made on tablets found at Hasanlu in Iran's Urmia region.  The actual cultivation of rice in Bet-Nahrain appears to have taken place much later.

Mesopotamian Civilization, D.T. Potts

AD (363)

The Roman emperor, Jovian, surrenders the city of Nisibin to the Persians in 363.  Christian refugees from this Assyrian city pour into Urhai (Edessa). Among them was the poet Ephraim the Syrian.  The  Edessan Christians later adopted the Monophysite view, hence were forced to move back to Nisibin, still held by the Persians.

See This Week's ASSYRIAN SURFING POSTS

“I am both honored and saddened to be an Assyrian. Honored by my rich heritage and saddened by the fact that our people have no native homeland ...We fly a flag with no soil to support it. But we have our customs, our language and our love for one another. Who knows what the future will bring.”

“Mason backed up, and in a spectacular move, ran for the table ... Springing up, he vigorously propelled his tightly muscled body high into the air ... Now with the force of gravity pulling him back down, he fell with increasing speed. He rolled himself into a ball ... In the next instant, Mason uncoiled his body in an explosion of motion ... the helpless goons toppled over like bowling pins and fell unconscious to the ground.”

“Sam had never killed anybody, even during his two tours in Vietnam, but he was ready to kill now. As he crouched expectantly behind the machine gun, he kept thinking, What these bastards have done to Mason. What they have done to the Kuwaiti people. What they have done to me and my family. Somebody is going to pay. Somebody is going to die.”

“The soldier really wanted to quit, but he knew deep down that losing face would be much worse than losing his winnings. He looked at both stashes for a long moment. Then he turned his attention to the dice.”

November 6, 1975:  David Malik Ismail, an Assyrian from Ontario, Canada, assassinates His Holiness Mar Eshai Shimmun, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, in San Jose, California.

The Assyrian Youth Band is a newly-formed musical band in the Assyrian-Australian music scene.  The Melbourne group of four debuted its talent on 26 September.  Bshar Oshana, 25, on bass; Marwan Yousif, 25, on keyboard; Reimon Oshana, 17, also on keyboard, and Giliana Esho are currently working on cover songs, but will soon release their original work.  AYB was formed a few months ago and has since claimed a place in the hearts of its local youth fans.  Many such new Assyrian "youth" bands with the "new sounds of Assyria" are being formed around the world - catering to the palette of the MTV generation of hip-hop, alternative pop, and techno sound.  While seen as a threat to the traditional sound of Assyrian music, the new generation of Assyrian entertainers continue to pull larger crowds of Assyrian youth to the parties once frequented by adults only.  Fortunately, Assyrian musical giants like Ashur Sargis, Ogin, and Linda George, have already begun the mentoring process of a few such talented musicians and vocalists.  With the support of their local Assyrian organizations and churches the new generation of Assyrian musical bands, as that of the Assyrian Youth Band, promise to usher the Assyrian music world into the new dimensions.

Information on AYB adopted from an article in Nakosha Newsletter, Issue #9 (October 1998)

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