ARMENIAN PATRIARCH KAREKIN DEFENDS ARMENIAN CLAIMS IN TURKEY
By Melike Duransoy, JTW
Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
June 27 2007
* Karekin II: "Ankara should recognise the Armenian massacre"
* Armenian Patriarch Karekin Defends Armenian Claims in Turkey. Turks
say that if a Turkish man defends Turkish ideas on the histoical
claims in Armenia he or she would face very rude attitudes
* Karekin II conducted a service on Sunday in the central church of
the Turkish Armenian Patriarchy, Istanbul
* NATO PA Vice-president, Turkish diplomat Vahit Erdem had been
deprived of the office car and guard and he was considered as ‘enemy’
because of his statements on the historical Armenian claims
ISTANBUL (JTW)- Armenian General Patriarch Karekin II, currently on
a visit to Turkey, on Sunday said that Ankara should recognise the
so-called Armenian genocide of 1915.
Speaking at a press conference after conducting a mass in an Armenian
church in Istanbul, Karekin II said the allegations of genocide against
the Ottoman Empire’s Armenian community had been studied for 90 years
by academics and there is no for any discussion or any more study on
the issue.
"For our people the genocide is not an issue of research," he said.
"This is an incident that has happened and its has to be recognised."
Turkey has not accepted the Armenian allegations since the
establishment of the modern republic. Turks argue that more
than 520,000 Turkish people were massacred by the armed Armenian
groups during the First World War and there was no genocide or any
state-sponsored massacre against Armenians.
Karekin II said that Armenia was very willing to develop relations
with Turkey and stressed that if the two countries worked together
constructive solutions could be found to the problem.
In response to Turkey giving high points to Armenia in the Eurovision
Song Contest, Karekin II said that this should be seen as a positive
step.
Turkish Armenian experts however argues that Karekin II is lucky
because he was speaking in a ‘democratic country’. Dr. Nilgun Gulcan
for instance told the JTW that no Turkish could defend Turkish
perspective in Armenia.
Dr. Gulcan further says:
"You may find any pro-Armenian book in Turkish bookstores and you
can freely defend the Armenian or any other perspectives in Turkey.
Almost all ‘genocide’ literature have been translated Turkish
language. We clearly understood what the Armenians think about the
1915 Events. But Armenians have no idea about Turkish perspective.
They do not listen. They think that, if they listen to the Turks,
they would commit a great sin. You have to risk your life to defend
Turkish perspective in Armenia. No Turk defending Turkish perspective
could go to Armenia. A Turkish historian was in Armenia last year
and spent months in an Armenian prison. And Turkish MP and NATO PA
Vice-president Vahit Erdem faced difficulties in yerevan when he said
that there was no genocide at all."
Turkish prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan offered to establish a common
commission to discuss the historical disputes between the Turks and
Armenians, however Arzmenia rejected the offer and declared "there
is nothing to be discussed".
According to Dr. Sedat laciner from Ankara-based Turkish
think tank USAK, the Armenian approach regarding the past is
"shut-up-and-accept-it" policy. "They do not listen to what you say.
They try to order Turkish people to accept what they think. This is
not the best way to develop any co-operation" Dr. Laciner says.