THE WOODEN BRIDGE CONNECTING THE TWO SIDES OF THE RIVER
Hurriyet Daily News
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Bursa
I encountered an interesting situation in Bursa where I came for
the return game between the national football teams of Turkey and
Armenia. After a short conversation, Umit Gunes_, my taxi driver, asked
me whether I was of Armenian origin or not. I told him I am an Armenian
of Istanbul origin and I came to Bursa to follow news for my newspaper.
This was the beginning of an interesting dialogue. I told Gunes_
that I want to share his story with the readers of the Hurriyet Daily
News & Economic Review. Although he was working, Gunes_ pulled over
and answered my questions for the next 20 minutes.
The wooden bridge
Gunes_is from one of the farthest eastern locations of Turkey. He was
born in Kockiran Village of Igdir, near the River Aras, only meters
away from Armenia. Gunes_ said his family was one of the oldest in Igri
and the first wooden suspension bridge over the River Aras between
Turkey and Armenia was built by his grandfather. "There was not much
of a border in those years, passing through each side is free but you
had to walk through the waters of Aras to get to the other side. My
grandfather was a carpenter and he had built that bridge with help
from his Armenian neighbors from one end to the other," he said.
Gunes_ said the wooden bridge was still standing on the River Aras
although it cannot be used due to the border problem. Gunes_ said
the people of Igdir like Armenians very much and continued: "The
most painful events were experienced during the era of the Ottomans’
fall. Armenians are true children of this land. We are a family;
agitations and afflictions are experienced in every family but now
is the time to hug each other."
A sad stare to the other side
GuneÅ~_ had spent his childhood near the River Aras. "We used to walk
through the river to the other side, to Armenia. We did not even know
it was a different country.
ur Armenian friends there and play games.
GuneÅ~_ said the border was closed in the following years because
of the Nagorno-Karabakh war between Azerbaijan and Armenia. "My
[Armenian] friends were left on the other side. We still saw each
other but obviously it was not like before because passing through
to the other side was forbidden. GuneÅ~_ said he used to stand at
the Turkish side of the bridge at night and sadly stare to the other
side. "The bright lights of the capital Yerevan were blinking from
the other side. I was promising myself each time that I would pass
to the other side again one day. If the border opens, visiting my
village and meeting my friends by passing to the Armenian side is
the first thing I would do."
‘Open the border’
GuneÅ~_ said he has been closely following the process of
reestablishing diplomatic relations between Turkey and Armenia. "I am
very angry with the diaspora. Our neighbors in Armenia are experiencing
great economical difficulties. Closed borders do not benefit anyone in
this age. They should not intervene to the process," he said. GuneÅ~_
wanted to end his words by making a call to the Turkish authorities:
"My request from you, as someone from Igdır, is the border to be
opened. Armenians are people of those lands, they are our neighbors,
let us not treat them as stepchildren."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
