Scientists Cannot Be Stopped By Courts, Turkish Historian

Journal of Turkish Weekly
May 8 2005

Prof. Dr. Yusuf Halacoglu, the Chairman of the Turkish History Society
(TTK), said on Wednesday that scientists could be criticized, but
could not be stopped by courts, when commenting on the investigation
launched regarding the statements he made in Switzerland that the
Armenian genocide allegations were baseless, AA news agency reported.

Stating that the Armenians were manipulated by western imperialism,
Halacoglu said, “you can’t expect two nations (Turks and Armenians)
that lived together for 850 years to become enemies suddenly. There
are circles which provoke this (enmity). You can see how they were
organized in French archives, how they are used by the Brits, and
how Russians usedthem as spies. If I were an Armenian, I would sue
Britain, France and Russia in international courts.”

Halacoglu added, “genocide cannot be committed by an entire nation.
Genocide can be carried out by a government or administration, and
so they (government/administration) should be accused. But, they
(foreigners) are accusing the entire Turkish nation. They are trying
to apply a double standard, and they have different targets. It is
not just to reject Turkey’s EU membership. This is also related with
Turkey’s standing as a regional power, and not allowing imperialist
countries to exploit its underground resources. In fact, they are
trying to reinforce Sevres (Treaty).”

The Armenian Diaspora in European countries tries to silence
Turkish academicians and those who speak different than the Armenian
approach. Man Turkish historians do not share the Armenian allegations
and argue that Armenians rioted against the Ottoman Empire and
failed to establish a separate state. The Armenian politicians today
curtail the current problems by abusing the past issues. Turkish Prime
Minister Tayyip Erdogan called the Armenian leaders to establish a
joint commission to discuss the historical disputes.

JTW 8 May 2005