ArmenPress
March 18 2005

TURKISH HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS SAY GOVERNMENT MUST APOLOGIZE TO
ARMENIANS

ISTANBUL, MARCH 17, ARMENPRESS: Two Turkish human rights
activists, Alhan Bilgen and Yusuf Alatash, said public debates about
the Armenian genocide within the Turkish society are taking place in
an uneasy atmosphere raising the concerns of Turkish Armenians.
In an interview with a Turkish daily Yeni Safag, Bilgen said
public discussions on the Armenian genocide must be free of
accusations of the Armenian race in order “not to offend Turkish
Armenian citizens.”
“Like the current government of Turkey bears no responsibility for
massacres of Armenians in the World War I, likewise Turkish Armenians
bear no responsibility for the actions of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation/ Dashnaktsutyun,” he said, adding that Turks must realize
that Turkish Armenians, Armenians in other foreign countries and
those in Armenia proper are different.
Calling on the government of Turkey to acknowledge that Armenians
were deported in mass in the beginning of the 20-th century, Bingel
said it was done to prevent the revolution plotted by Armenian
nationalists. “The deported Armenians were Turkish citizens and the
responsibility for the deaths occurred during the deportation lies on
the Ottoman government, but nevertheless, the Turkish government must
apologize for those them,” he said.
Alatash in turn was quoted as saying that the latest debates on
the Armenian genocide “have deteriorated the state of national
minorities in Turkey.” “The debates have placed Armenians out of the
frying pan into the fire. Diaspora Armenians demand that they should
join their campaign for the genocide recognition, while Turks call
them traitors,” he said adding also that present day Turks must
apologize for what their grandparents did to Armenians.