Turkish Historians Provide Support for Halacoglu
By Abdullah Kilic
Zaman, Turkey
May 5 2005
Reaction against the sentence in absentia of Turkish Institute of
History (TTK) President, Professor Yusuf Halacoglu, by a Zurich court
in Switzerland, has been increasing gradually.
Three hundred fifty historians including Professor Halil Inalcik,
Professor Ilber Ortayli, Professor Kemal Beydilli, Professor Mustafa
Cetin Varlik, Professor Mucteba Ilgurel, Professor Feridun Emecen,
and Professor Yucel Ozkaya released a declaration on Wednesday, May
5, supporting Halacoglu, who was sentenced in absentia because he
said during a speech at a 2004 symposium in Switzerland, “There is
no Armenian genocide.” Supporting Halacoglu’s efforts to reveal the
historical facts about the Armenian emigration from Anatolia during
World War I, the 350 historians protested the unlawful action against
Halacoglu’s freedom of thought and speech. They expressed that the
unlawful act against the TTK President Halacoglu in Switzerland deeply
saddened them. The historians also prepared a scientific report on
the Armenian genocide allegations. The report indicates that Armenian
emigration in 1915 was not a pre-meditated plan but rather a temporary
and compulsory measure to provide security for the Ottoman army,
which was assaulted by Armenian guerillas in several regions, and to
prevent the clashes already occurring between Armenians and Muslims
from spreading. The report sheds light on the historical facts.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress