EMIGRATION
By Turker Alkan

Turkish Press
April 26 2006

RADIKAL- Almost everybody I met in Armenia has a relation with
Anatolia. I heard such words from many Armenians: ‘My grandfather
was from Kayseri’ or ‘My mother was from Sivas.’ Another April 24 has
come and gone. Armenians held demonstrations which showed that they
hadn’t forgotten their sorrow and which were against Turks. Nothing
has changed. They insist that we confess and accept that we committed
a genocide against them. The Turkish side is suspicious and asks,
‘If we were to accept the genocide now, would there be other demands
tomorrow?’ When the issue is brought up, we discuss the legal meaning
of the term ‘genocide’ and say, ‘No, this wasn’t genocide.’ Even if
we don’t justify ourselves, we have certain explanations to excuse
ourselves: ‘A mutual massacre happened in 1915, and the Armenians
started it as supported by Russians.’ All this is true to a great
extent, but Turks suffered greatly during the collapse of the Ottoman
Empire as well. Millions of Turks who had to escape from Crete, Western
Thrace, Pristina, Greece and Bulgaria were killed and they suffered
pain and hunger. The world looked on and did nothing. After all, we
were Muslims. We even forgot it. Almost everybody who is close to me
(including my family) has emigration stories, which carry the traces
of blood and tears. However, we forgot them a long time ago. We’re
forgetting them rapidly as well.

However, all these things neither justify, nor excuse the sad incidents
which were experienced with the Armenian emigration. Even if calling
this ’emigration’ instead of ‘genocide’ has a legal meaning, it
doesn’t change anything in terms of conscience.

Journalist Murat Bardakci has been writing for a few days about the
sad incidents that the Armenians suffered. Whatever you call them,
these incidents are shameful. Some 141,000 Armenians were living in
Sivas in 1914, but after 1915 there were only 8,100. Nearly 472,000
Armenians in Erzurum, Bitlis, Van, Diyarbakir, Trabzon and Elaizg
were exiled to other places. Even if those who took this decision to
exile them had no intention of killing or destroying the Armenians,
the result which emerged was this.

It’s very natural for states to develop a thesis and determine
a stance to benefit themselves. It seems Turkey and Armenia won’t
change their ideas anytime soon. However, the important thing was the
people who suffered and who were killed. Not the states, but academics,
historians and artists can put forth this dimension of the issue. They
have great duties, and individual efforts can create an atmosphere
which can change the stance of states. Fortunately, Mr. Bardakci
tried to do this.