Charlotte Observer, NC
July 13 2005
Duke doctoral student detained in Armenia
NORTH CAROLINA
DURHAM — A Duke University doctoral student and historian from
Turkey with a reputation for writing impartially about Armenia has
been detained for more than three weeks in that country. Yektan
Turkyilmaz has the distinction of being the only Turk known to
conduct research in Armenia’s national archives, a privilege he
earned despite the uneasy relations between the two
countries.Turkyilmaz has not been charged with anything, but he
reportedly broke an Armenian law forbidding anyone from taking a book
that is more than 50 years old out of the country without permission.
During his time in Armenia, Turkyilmaz bought some second-hand books
from street vendors, said his adviser, Duke professor Orin Starn.
Turkyilmaz was departing June 17 from Yerevan, the capital city of
Armenia, when he was pulled from the plane and held by Armenia’s
National Security Service. —