INSTITUTE FOR ARMENIAN STUDIES IN ANKARA
"Noravank" Foundation
06 October 2008
Haykaram Nahapetyan
In summer 2001 in Ankara was founded the Institute for Armenian Studies
Organization. It works in cooperation with Turkey’s "Eurasian" Center
for Strategic Studies. The latter one is one of the biggest centers in
Turkey carrying out strategic researches. According to some information
the structure is patronized by the Turkish "Nationalist Movement"
Party (MHP).
The structure is located at 550, 61 Konrad Adenauer Street, in Ankara’s
Cankaya district. In the very district is located the President of
Turkey’s office. It is quite ridiculous that the organization spreading
denial is located in the Avenue after Konrad Adenauer, which, as it
is known, set the policy of "confronting" and "confessing" fascist
crimes in post-war Germany.
In 2002 and 2004 the structure has organized a Congress on Armenian
Studies.
The structure also has a working library on the subject of the Armenian
Question which has French, English, German, Russian, Amenian and
Turkish literature. It has also a video archive on the subject. In
summer months in the institute is organized working practice of
Turkish students.
The structure is presently headed by Omer Engin Lyutem.
Although the structure is called the Institute for Armenian Studies,
however, by its functions it doesn’t20completely coincide with
its name.
One can not even speak about objective researches on the subjects of
Armenian civilization, culture and history. The structure is mainly
engaged in carrying out works of denying character in the issue of the
Armenian Genocide and conducts researches to reveal propagandistic,
social-political activities and economic capabilities of the Armenian
Diaspora. As it is mentioned in the organization’s site "The institute
has an objective to embrace the issue taking into consideration
historical, psychological, legal and international elements of the
Armenian Question."
In 2007 the structure published the work "The Armenian Question:
main data and documents" where are presented the Turkish and American
"historians’" articles of denying character referring to the "Great
Genocide." In particular Justin McCarty presented the articles
"Armenian rebellions and Ottomans" and "Let historians judge." There
is also a page on the subject of the NKR conflict, where one can read
the work by Omer Lyutem "Nagorno-Karabakh issue."
It is noteworthy that since the time the structure has been functioning
there was a short period when an attempt was made to refuse "radical
denying" policy and not to limit the researches on the Armenian
subjects by mere denial. In 2003-2004 the organization was headed
by Hasan Oktay, who, according to some information, made an attempt
to make some corrections in that extremist approach. On August 2004
Oktay came to Yerevan and visited the monument to the victims of the
Armenian Genocide and the Genocide Museum.
During the meetings he was speaking in favor of certain liberation in
Turkey. Under the leadership of Oktay the research institute organized
the Second Congress of Armenian Studies, where, together with works
of mere denying character, were also voiced reports relating to other
periods of the Armenian history, in particular, early medieval period.
According to the information at hand, Oktay’s liberal approaches
caused serious discontent among Turkish extremists; the relations
between the Institute for Armenian Studies and Turke’s Historical
institute became tense. Three months after he has returned from
Armenia, at the end of 2004, Hasan Oktay was dismissed.
Hasan Oktay’s name can not be put in the same rank together with
Turkish intellectuals and human rights advocates with liberal
ideas- Halil Berktay, Elda Ozjan, Orhan Pamuk etc. Oktan just
had more moderate approaches and was aspiring not to appear among
the oppositionists and work with governmental circles to ensure
liberalism of certain extent to the Armenian Question. Oktay failed
in his efforts because of striking discrepancy with officials with
tough and extremist approaches.
It is also noteworthy the page of the Institute’s site20where one
can find information on the Armenian subject-matter in other Turkish
publications. In particular here are represented the studies on
"Turkish facts against Armenian confirmations" published by Turkish
Great National Assembly which was made ready for publication by the
head of the Department of Armenian Studies of Turkish Historians
Union Hikmet Ozdemir.
The General Directorate of State Archives has published
"Armenian-American relations in Ottoman documents" two-volume edition,
the state administration of Bitlis – volumes about "massacres"
allegedly perpetrated by Armenians in Bitlis against Turks and Eldar
Ilter – the book "Great treachery: Armenian Church and terrorism." In
reality it is the republished version of Ilter’s book "Armenian
Church and terrorism" published in 1997. Ilter is well known by his
extremism. According to him, in the above mentioned work the Armenian
party massacred for about 2,5 million Turks. Ilter doesn’t detail how
such a limited number of Armenian units located in limited territories
could perpetrate such a hideous massacre, if, putting aside the
historical part of the story, it was not even possible mere technical
realization of it. In the site one can also get information about
English language editions published in the US and Turkey, such as the
work "Armenian rebellions in Van" published by the University of the
US Uta h State. The authors of the work are "American representatives"
of Turkish denial Justin McCarty and a group of Turkish Authors –
Esat Arslan, Jemaletin Tashqra, and Omer Tura. In the site is also
represented the work of another American "denier" Hyunter Levi titled
"Armenian massacres perpetrated in the Ottoman Turkey."
Special attention is to be devoted to the Armenian language manual "I
learn English" published in Ankara in 2007 by Birsen Karajan. According
to the site, it is the first manual of Eastern Armenian published
in Turkey.
It consists of 160 pages and 18 separate lessons. It is also noteworthy
the "Eastern Armenian-Turkish" dictionary published by the very Birsen
Karajan. It consists of 372 pages.
It is to be mentioned that the Armenian party has some privileges over
Turkey today, as for the last decades Turkology has been developed
in Armenia and at present there are some specialists working in
the mentioned direction. However, in Turkey Armenology has not been
developed. Publication of the mentioned books, rising interest to
Eastern Armenians and involving of the Armenian language into Turkish
higher educational system have come to prove that Ankara aspires at
filling up the gap.
Other issues of author
PROPAGANDISTIC ACTIVITIES OF AZERBAIJANI "DIASPORA" [07.07.2008]
DISCUSSIONS ON THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE COMMEMORATION DAY IN TURKISH
MASS MEDIA [19.06.2008] ON THE PROBLEM OF THE INCREASING NUMBER OF
AZERBAIJANI WEB-SITES IN THE INTERNET [31.01.2008] ON PURPOSEFUL
DISINFORMATION ACTIVITY IN AZERBAIJAN [03.09.2007] The dynamic of
carrying on the Azerbaijani lobbing [16.05.2007] The process of the
making of Azerbaijani lobbing: general data [26.04.2007]