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Al-Monitor
April 24 2014
Erdogan erases Armenian taboo
Author: Rasim Ozan KutahyaliPosted April 24, 2014
A day before the annual commemoration of the 1915 Armenian genocide,
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his condolences
to the grandchildren of those who lost their lives. As the BBC noted,
Erdogan's message, issued in nine languages, was unprecedented in the
history of the Turkish republic. Specifically, he said, `We wish that
the Armenians who lost their lives in the context of the early 20th
century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to their
grandchildren.' He also stated, `Millions of people of all religions
and ethnicities lost their lives in the First World War. Having
experienced events which had inhumane consequences ' such as
relocation, during the First World War ' should not prevent Turks and
Armenians from establishing compassion and mutually humane attitudes
towards one another.'
Summary?' Print Most Turks are still conditioned against Armenians, but
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's message can help change
attitudes.
AuthorRasim Ozan KutahyaliPosted April 24, 2014
Devlet Bahceli, chairman of the opposition Nationalist Action Party
(MHP), when asked to comment on Erdogan's statement said, `There is
nothing to assess here. It is too much to torment this nation like
this.'
Faruk Lologlu, deputy chairman of main opposition Republican People's
Party (CHP), said the most important aspect of Erdogan's statement was
his use of the word `condolences.' He asserted, `Condolence is a
sacred notion, so there is no need to take offense.' Lologlu did,
however, question why, after being in power so long, Erdogan had
chosen 2014 to make his statement.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu added his voice, stating, `History is
not black and white. ¦ Everyone needs to show virtue by sharing the
pains of the past. I hope the hand we extended will be reciprocated.
Turkey does not make such statements under pressure. It is not a
declaration made because of timing requirements.'
Armenia and the Armenian diaspora want the deaths of some 1.5 million
Armenians forcefully deported during the Ottoman Empire to be
recognized as genocide. Some 20 countries, including France, Germany,
Russia and Sweden, recognize the 1915 events as such, but the United
States, with a large Armenian diaspora, has not yet done so. I am one
of those Turks who considers the deaths genocide and have openly said
so in the Turkish media and through Al-Monitor. Many people recognize
me on the street in Turkey because I am also a TV personality. Some
Turks support me for this opinion, but others hate me.
The reality is that in pre-Erdogan Turkey, no one ' whether a
well-known, popular media figure or someone working in the most
marginal media ' would have written that the 1915 events were
genocide. Doing so would have resulted in immediate imprisonment. In
the Erdogan era, speaking about 1915 has gradually come to be
accepted. Today in Turkey, the Armenian genocide can be freely
discussed. Turkey has made significant progress in respect to freedom
of expression on this and the Kurdish issue.
Some writers who personally dislike Erdogan and the Gulenist movement,
whose secretive penetration of the state is now known, still insist on
presenting an incorrect portrait of Turkey to the world. Sure, some of
Erdogan's policies have been bad ' there is much to criticize about
his 11-year rule ' but as prime minister, he has proven that he is a
leader who learns from his mistakes. He has no immovable obsessions
and is flexible. His political speeches are provocative, and he stands
firm against his rivals, but when it comes to official policies, he
can dispense with rigidity and reverse positions.
For example, Erdogan's analysis of the situation in Syria was faulty,
which led to bad policy decisions. With his Syrian policy at an
impasse, Erdogan is now likely to take a more realistic position. We
should not ignore, as Mustafa Akyol's analysis for Al-Monitor
suggests, that Erdogan will be the most important political figure in
Turkey for the next 10 years. The Erdogan phenomenon must therefore be
examined impartially, free of personal animosities.
A prominent Turkish writer who knew and shared my views about the 1915
Armenian genocide predicted that Erdogan would have me fired from my
newspaper. I disagreed, saying that I understood Erdogan's approach to
the Armenian issue, but being a wise politician, he would tackle
public perceptions step by step and at the end eliminate the taboo
surrounding 1915. I do not feel that anything justifies portraying
Erdogan as a reactionary in regard to the Armenian question.
I asked a friend of mine sensitive about the Armenian issue if he
would still be unsatisfied if on April 24, 2015, Erdogan traveled to
Yerevan as the new president of Turkey, prayed for the genocide's
victims and laid a wreath on their memorial. His response was that
Erdogan should not be the president of Turkey, and that we had to be
freed of the man. My friend was accepting that anyone other than
Erdogan become president, even if he was a fascist who would justify
what we did to the Armenians.
Erdogan's Turkey will from now on confront 1915. Many more steps could
follow in 2015. When it comes to facing up to the past, Erdogan is far
ahead of his party and cabinet. Davutoglu's comment on the issue was
in a language reminiscent of the Kemalist diplomatic tradition.
Turkish diplomacy under Davutolgu must support Erdogan's courageous
move and not create obstructions for Erdogan.
With Erdogan's statement on 1915, the last taboo of the Turkish
republic is gone. True, most people still think as they were
conditioned to by Kemalist Turkish nationalists, but Erdogan's
approach will soften this unaccommodating mentality. Erdogan is a
leader who can change the minds of people. The Turkish nation must,
indeed, convey our condolences to the grandchildren of our Armenian
brothers and sisters massacred by the Talat Pasha government in 1915.
In this, Erdogan has once again proven to the world that he is not a
leader from the usual mold. Those assessing Turkey in Washington must
take care to accurately analyze the Erdogan phenomenon.
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/04/armenian-genocide-erdogan-message-condolences.html#
April 24 2014
Erdogan erases Armenian taboo
Author: Rasim Ozan KutahyaliPosted April 24, 2014
A day before the annual commemoration of the 1915 Armenian genocide,
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his condolences
to the grandchildren of those who lost their lives. As the BBC noted,
Erdogan's message, issued in nine languages, was unprecedented in the
history of the Turkish republic. Specifically, he said, `We wish that
the Armenians who lost their lives in the context of the early 20th
century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to their
grandchildren.' He also stated, `Millions of people of all religions
and ethnicities lost their lives in the First World War. Having
experienced events which had inhumane consequences ' such as
relocation, during the First World War ' should not prevent Turks and
Armenians from establishing compassion and mutually humane attitudes
towards one another.'
Summary?' Print Most Turks are still conditioned against Armenians, but
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's message can help change
attitudes.
AuthorRasim Ozan KutahyaliPosted April 24, 2014
Devlet Bahceli, chairman of the opposition Nationalist Action Party
(MHP), when asked to comment on Erdogan's statement said, `There is
nothing to assess here. It is too much to torment this nation like
this.'
Faruk Lologlu, deputy chairman of main opposition Republican People's
Party (CHP), said the most important aspect of Erdogan's statement was
his use of the word `condolences.' He asserted, `Condolence is a
sacred notion, so there is no need to take offense.' Lologlu did,
however, question why, after being in power so long, Erdogan had
chosen 2014 to make his statement.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu added his voice, stating, `History is
not black and white. ¦ Everyone needs to show virtue by sharing the
pains of the past. I hope the hand we extended will be reciprocated.
Turkey does not make such statements under pressure. It is not a
declaration made because of timing requirements.'
Armenia and the Armenian diaspora want the deaths of some 1.5 million
Armenians forcefully deported during the Ottoman Empire to be
recognized as genocide. Some 20 countries, including France, Germany,
Russia and Sweden, recognize the 1915 events as such, but the United
States, with a large Armenian diaspora, has not yet done so. I am one
of those Turks who considers the deaths genocide and have openly said
so in the Turkish media and through Al-Monitor. Many people recognize
me on the street in Turkey because I am also a TV personality. Some
Turks support me for this opinion, but others hate me.
The reality is that in pre-Erdogan Turkey, no one ' whether a
well-known, popular media figure or someone working in the most
marginal media ' would have written that the 1915 events were
genocide. Doing so would have resulted in immediate imprisonment. In
the Erdogan era, speaking about 1915 has gradually come to be
accepted. Today in Turkey, the Armenian genocide can be freely
discussed. Turkey has made significant progress in respect to freedom
of expression on this and the Kurdish issue.
Some writers who personally dislike Erdogan and the Gulenist movement,
whose secretive penetration of the state is now known, still insist on
presenting an incorrect portrait of Turkey to the world. Sure, some of
Erdogan's policies have been bad ' there is much to criticize about
his 11-year rule ' but as prime minister, he has proven that he is a
leader who learns from his mistakes. He has no immovable obsessions
and is flexible. His political speeches are provocative, and he stands
firm against his rivals, but when it comes to official policies, he
can dispense with rigidity and reverse positions.
For example, Erdogan's analysis of the situation in Syria was faulty,
which led to bad policy decisions. With his Syrian policy at an
impasse, Erdogan is now likely to take a more realistic position. We
should not ignore, as Mustafa Akyol's analysis for Al-Monitor
suggests, that Erdogan will be the most important political figure in
Turkey for the next 10 years. The Erdogan phenomenon must therefore be
examined impartially, free of personal animosities.
A prominent Turkish writer who knew and shared my views about the 1915
Armenian genocide predicted that Erdogan would have me fired from my
newspaper. I disagreed, saying that I understood Erdogan's approach to
the Armenian issue, but being a wise politician, he would tackle
public perceptions step by step and at the end eliminate the taboo
surrounding 1915. I do not feel that anything justifies portraying
Erdogan as a reactionary in regard to the Armenian question.
I asked a friend of mine sensitive about the Armenian issue if he
would still be unsatisfied if on April 24, 2015, Erdogan traveled to
Yerevan as the new president of Turkey, prayed for the genocide's
victims and laid a wreath on their memorial. His response was that
Erdogan should not be the president of Turkey, and that we had to be
freed of the man. My friend was accepting that anyone other than
Erdogan become president, even if he was a fascist who would justify
what we did to the Armenians.
Erdogan's Turkey will from now on confront 1915. Many more steps could
follow in 2015. When it comes to facing up to the past, Erdogan is far
ahead of his party and cabinet. Davutoglu's comment on the issue was
in a language reminiscent of the Kemalist diplomatic tradition.
Turkish diplomacy under Davutolgu must support Erdogan's courageous
move and not create obstructions for Erdogan.
With Erdogan's statement on 1915, the last taboo of the Turkish
republic is gone. True, most people still think as they were
conditioned to by Kemalist Turkish nationalists, but Erdogan's
approach will soften this unaccommodating mentality. Erdogan is a
leader who can change the minds of people. The Turkish nation must,
indeed, convey our condolences to the grandchildren of our Armenian
brothers and sisters massacred by the Talat Pasha government in 1915.
In this, Erdogan has once again proven to the world that he is not a
leader from the usual mold. Those assessing Turkey in Washington must
take care to accurately analyze the Erdogan phenomenon.
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/04/armenian-genocide-erdogan-message-condolences.html#