PRESS RELEASE
Armenian General Benevolent Union AGBU
Montreal
805 Manoogian Street
Montreal Quebec
H4N-1Z5
514-748-2428
e-mail [email protected].
Previously banned from the Ottoman Archives: German Historian Returns
to reveal his latest Discoveries
Recently returned from his studies in the Ottoman archives, Professor
Hilmar Kaiser will be delivering a presentation at 8:00 pm this
Thursday, September 1, at the Montreal Armenian Community’s AGBU
Center at 805 Manoogian Street in St-Laurent.
In July 2005, Dr. Hilmar Kaiser, a German historian, visited the
Turkish Prime Minister’s Ottoman Archives in Istanbul, Turkey. He
had worked in these archives between 1991 and 1995. In 1996, he was
banned from the archives by the Turkish authorities for political
reasons. During his research, he had uncovered important archival
material detailing aspects of the Armenian Genocide. For years,
scholars, politicians, and Armenians worldwide had demanded his re-
admission.
Returning after 10 years, Dr. Kaiser was able to conclude some
projects that were left unfinished. He also reviewed new archival
resources and the overall conditions for continued research. Thus,
on the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, a critical step
forward in the opening of the Turkish archives has been made.
The Armenian Community of Canada and Montreal supported this study,
but its significance goes far beyond. There is good reason to hope
this step in the right direction will not be the last by the Turkish
government.
The presentation this Thursday will introduce new results and
provide an assessment on the current state of research of the Ottoman
archives relating to the Armenian Genocide. For the first time, Dr.
Kaiser will report on his research trip and discuss perspectives for
future research.
For more information, please contact Armenian General Benevolent Union
AGBU Montreal at 514-748-2428 or e-mail: [email protected].