Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
June 12 2005
Turkish Minister Postpones Swiss Visit in Protest
ANKARA – Turkish State Minister Kursat Tuzmen postponed an official
visit to Switzerland to protest against a Swiss investigation into a
Turkish historian, Yusuf Halacoglu, who denied the so-called Armenian
genocide claims, officials said late Thursday. In Switzerland no one
can defend a pro-Turkish approach on Armenian issue.
Tuzmen had been scheduled to take part in a June 22-24 Turkish-Swiss
business forum. But his visit and the conference were “indefinitely
postponed” because of an ongoing Swiss criminal probe into Halacoglu,
the head of the Turkish Historical Society (TTK), officials in
Tuzmen’s office said.
The probe was launched because of suspicions that Halacoglu had
violatedSwiss ‘anti-racism laws’ by denying the so-called Armenian
genocide claims in a speech last year.
Turkish the Anatolia news agency said a visit by Swiss Economy
Minister Joseph Deiss to Turkey, scheduled for September, has also
been postponed. Turkish officials could not immediately confirm the
report.
Manuel Sager, spokesman for the Swiss Economy Ministry, said that
Deiss would like to travel to Turkey as planned, but “the trip has
yet to be confirmed from the Turkish side.”
Tuzmen’s postponement is the latest row between Turkey and
Switzerland over the Armenian “genocide” claims.
Micheline Calmy-Rey, the Swiss foreign minister, had been scheduled
to travel to Turkey in 2003, but Turkey withdrew its invitation after
the Parliament of a western Swiss canton (state) recognized the
so-called Armenian genocide claims that March.
The Armenians claim that the Ottomans committed a genocide against
Armenians in 1915, and modern Turkey has to recognise it. However
Turkey has never accepted the allegations. Hundred and thousands of
Turks and Armenian died during the Armenian riot. Moder than 523,000
Turkish Ottoman citizens were massacred by the Armenian gangs.
Similarly many Armenians died in the ethnic clashes. Many more died
due to the war curcumstances. The Armenian diaspora never used the
term ‘genocide’ till 1965. However after the 1965 demonstrations,
Armenian groups started anti-Turkish campaigns in the Western
countries.
There is a strong Armenian diaspora in Switzerland and it manipulates
the Swiss politics towards Turkey.