PROFESSOR REACTING DURING ARMENIAN CONFERENCE REMOVED
By Emre Soncan

Zaman, Turkey
Sept 27 2005

zaman.com

Tensions rose during the second day of the conference titled “Ottoman
Armenians during the Decline of the Empire: Issues of Scientific
Responsibility and Democracy” held at Istanbul Bilgi University.

Upon the reactions of retired Professor Ilhan Cuhadaroglu, who was
among the guests, he was removed from the conference hall. Speakers
of the conference criticized for being unilateral at times quarreled
with each other.

Associated Professor Fatma M. Gocek accusing remarks made by Professor
Baskin Oran opposing the Armenian diaspora of being inconsistent.

Professor Cuhadaroglu taking the floor during the 9th session titled
“Armenian cases” criticized the conference, “There is an atmosphere
of lamentation in the conference. I felt as though I was in Bulgaria
or Greece.”

Cuhadaroglu receiving reactions from participants and the chairwomen
shouted, “You cannot bear hearing my comments, but you have to
get used to them.” In the aftermath of the experienced tension,
Chairwomen Professor Nuket Sirman from Bogazici University said she
closed the session.

“Why don’t any of you react against the decision taken in
Switzerland?” Cuhadaroglu insisted. Associated Professor Halil Berktay
sitting in front of Cuhadaroglu said, “I condemn it.”

Since the atmosphere became very tense, security guards removed
Cuhadaroglu out of the conference hall. Professor Cuhadaroglu told
to reporters that he was not invited to the conference; however,
entered the conference since he said he was a professor.

Saying he could not bear the representations given in the conference,
Cuhadaroglu went on that he was himself a Yugoslavian immigrant:
“They call it genocide. They deal with the Kurdish issue. No one
has right to tread our history underfoot. Armenians were elected as
deputies and entered any public institution. Turks were also massacred
in Urfa, Erzurum. Do those Turks not have any parents?”

Bumin: You could not persuade me

Another tension occurred during the speech of Professor Oran when he
used the term of “massacre” for the incidents that occurred in 1915
against the Armenians. Oran who also made accusations relating to
the Armenian diaspora said, “While calling on Turkey to discuss the
issue is taboo in Turkey, it is not consistent to attempt to prevent
discussions taking place in Switzerland and France.”

Participants of the conference reacted against Oran’s remarks during
the question session. Associated Professor Gocek uttered that blaming
the entire diaspora was erroneous. Upon Oran’s remark that 98 percent
of the Armenian diaspora thought same, the atmosphere tensed even
more. While some of the participants supported Oran by applauding,
Gocek accused Oran of being inconsistent.

Furthermore, Professor Mete Tuncay qualified that the Armenian
deportation as a “great tragedy” and emphasized that the insistence
on the expression of “genocide” will not contribute to a solution.

Yeni Safak newspaper columnist Kursat Bumin criticizing the commonly
held genocide allegations disclosed, “Those supporting genocide could
not even persuade me during this conference.”

Fehmi Koru and Ahmet Hakan, two prominent columnists in Turkey,
who were expected to speak at the conference, did not attend. While
attacks with eggs continued during second day of the conference,
protesters also tried to remove the European Union (EU) flag from
the front of the university building.

Representations to be combined into a book

Rectors of the Istanbul Bilgi University, Sabanci University and
Bogazici University made a joint announcement at the end of the
conference. Sabanci University rector Tosun Terzioglu said the
conference was significant in terms of the university’s autonomy and
the representations of the speakers will be combined in a book.

European Parliament (EP) Deputy Cem Ozdemir, on the other hand,
revealed holding the conference will decrease foreign pressures
on Turkey.