TURKISH-ARMENIANS CONDEMN ERDOGAN-SIRINOGLU MEETING
Today’s Zaman
April 1 2010
Turkey
A group of Turkish-Armenians have condemned remarks by a community
representative that Armenians in Turkey have no concerns over safety
and that disputes over history should be left behind.
Bedros Å~^irinoglu, the president of the board of trustees of the
Armenian Holy Savior Hospital, made the remarks after a meeting last
week with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The meeting came after
a controversial statement by Erdogan that Turkey could deport 100,000
illegal Armenian immigrants if foreign parliaments continue to pass
resolutions backing Armenian claims of genocide at the hands of the
Ottoman Empire. Å~^irinoglu said the events did not amount to genocide,
describing them as a "fight between good friends" and said there was
no point in digging further into what happened a century ago.
A petition signed by close to 300 Turkish-Armenians said Å~^irinoglu
did not represent the 60,000-strong Turkish-Armenian community and
criticized him for trying to "cover up a big crime against humanity."
"Hearing Å~^irinoglu’s statement that ‘Armenians feel safe in Turkey.
Have you ever heard any complaints from them?’ prompts us to think
that perhaps we live in a different Turkey," the petition said.
"Å~^irinoglu may be feeling safe in this country. But it is a lie
that Armenians feel safe," it went on, complaining of widespread
racism and discrimination.