413,000 ARMENIANS FORCED TO EMIGRATE
By Sezai Kalayci, Istanbul
Zaman Online, Turkey
April 27 2006
The chair of the Turkish History Council, Professor Yusuf Halacoglu
informed that the number of Armenians forced to relocate in 1915
was 413,000.
While claiming that these figures according to “The Secret Note Book of
Talat Pasha” were exaggerated, Halacoglu noted that the information in
the book published by the General Staff also confirmed his assessment.
“The number of Armenians sent to Syria was 413,000, a figure that I
wrote in my book and that the General Staff confirmed. The figure of
924,000 is not the actual number that was sent, but was probably the
planned number,” said Halacoglu.
The idea of forced emigration of Catholic and Protestant Armenians was
abandoned and in some cities, children and women were not relocated.
Halacoglu noted that the information Murat Bardakci, a columnist for
Hurriyet daily, took from the secret notebook of Talat Pasha, lacked
authenticity and what he wrote about as history, was just a story.
Highlighting that the population of Ankara was 44,000 in 1914,
Halacoglu continues: “According to Mr. Bardakci, the number of
Armenians that emigrated from Ankara was 47,000 and the number who
could not emigrate was 12,000. If you add these together it equals
60,000; therefore, refuting the accuracy of his quoted emigration
figures. I think Mr. Bardakci simply wants to remain popular.”
Baskent University faculty member Professor Servet Mutlu said the
notebook, which was supposedly written by Talat Pasha, might have
been written by somebody else. The accuracy of information could be
ascertained if the notebook describing the emigration was examined
at chronology laboratories.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
