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Hurriyet, Turkey
April 27 2012
Armenian, Turkish locals in court over land rights
Vercihan ZiflioÄ?lu
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
An Armenian community mounts a legal battle to retrieve their land in
the eastern province of Batman, saying the land was illegaly given to
others. However, the new locals of the land claim they bought the land
The disputed 3,000 acres of territory covers four villages. Acar,
Heybetli, BalbaÅ?ı and Ã?aÄ?ıl villages are all located in Sason district
of the eastern province of Batman. DHA photo
An Armenian community that was forced to vacate their villages in the
southeastern province of Batman 25 years ago due to politically
motivated violence in the region has mounted a legal battle to
retrieve disputed land.
`They could not retrieve their homes and land when they decided to
return back. The Directorate of Land and Cadastre has forged illegal
documents on behalf of those who occupied [the properties],' lawyer
Å?eyhmus Kabaday, who represents the villagers in court, told the
Hürriyet Daily News.
Acar village headman M. Å?irin Ekmen claimed otherwise, however, when
speaking on the occupant villagers' behalf.
`We, too, are in possession of documents, and we will also present
them to the court. The [inhabitants of] Acar bought 1,300 acres of
territory from Ä°sa Demirci, a prominent Armenian villager, in 1986. We
have the documents,' Ekmen said.
Some 3,000 acres of territory are at stake in the lawsuit filed by the
villagers, who left their land and homes behind to emigrate to
Istanbul in 1987 due to the regional violence spurred by clashes
between government forces and militants of the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK), unsolved murders and the Kurdish issue.
`They say they have deeds, [but] the signatures are fake, and there
are no originals. They are all photocopies. My clients, on the other
hand, are still in possession of their title deeds, and we have
presented them to court,' lawyer Kabaday said.
The next hearing is scheduled for May 4 at the cadastre court in
Batman's Sason district for the lands located in the villages of Acar,
Heybetli, BalbaÅ?ı and Ã?aÄ?ıl.
`Rights to be retrieved'
Speaking to the Daily News, a high-ranking state offcer said
beneficiaries would retrieve their rights if they filed a suit.
`[The Directorate of] Land and Cadastre entered places where it held
no authority. We have been pursuing the matter for the past three
years,' he said.
`If such repression existed as claimed, then these people would not
have continued living here. People emigrated due to concerns about
terrorism. Now we are collecting input for the archives,' he said.
Some of the Armenians who left their land currently live under Muslim
identities, the official added.
The damages incurred on people who abandoned their villages due to
fear of terrorism will be
compensated in accordance with Article 5233, which was legislated in
2004, if their claims can be verified, he said, adding that villagers
from Acar had already appealed to them. `We are the aggrieved party.
We [the inhabitants of] 38 households hit the road due to fear for our
lives, and we could never return back. We want to return back to our
village, but we are concerned about our security,' Osman (Hovsep)
Demirci, one of the litigants, told the Daily News.
April/27/2012
April 27 2012
Armenian, Turkish locals in court over land rights
Vercihan ZiflioÄ?lu
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
An Armenian community mounts a legal battle to retrieve their land in
the eastern province of Batman, saying the land was illegaly given to
others. However, the new locals of the land claim they bought the land
The disputed 3,000 acres of territory covers four villages. Acar,
Heybetli, BalbaÅ?ı and Ã?aÄ?ıl villages are all located in Sason district
of the eastern province of Batman. DHA photo
An Armenian community that was forced to vacate their villages in the
southeastern province of Batman 25 years ago due to politically
motivated violence in the region has mounted a legal battle to
retrieve disputed land.
`They could not retrieve their homes and land when they decided to
return back. The Directorate of Land and Cadastre has forged illegal
documents on behalf of those who occupied [the properties],' lawyer
Å?eyhmus Kabaday, who represents the villagers in court, told the
Hürriyet Daily News.
Acar village headman M. Å?irin Ekmen claimed otherwise, however, when
speaking on the occupant villagers' behalf.
`We, too, are in possession of documents, and we will also present
them to the court. The [inhabitants of] Acar bought 1,300 acres of
territory from Ä°sa Demirci, a prominent Armenian villager, in 1986. We
have the documents,' Ekmen said.
Some 3,000 acres of territory are at stake in the lawsuit filed by the
villagers, who left their land and homes behind to emigrate to
Istanbul in 1987 due to the regional violence spurred by clashes
between government forces and militants of the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK), unsolved murders and the Kurdish issue.
`They say they have deeds, [but] the signatures are fake, and there
are no originals. They are all photocopies. My clients, on the other
hand, are still in possession of their title deeds, and we have
presented them to court,' lawyer Kabaday said.
The next hearing is scheduled for May 4 at the cadastre court in
Batman's Sason district for the lands located in the villages of Acar,
Heybetli, BalbaÅ?ı and Ã?aÄ?ıl.
`Rights to be retrieved'
Speaking to the Daily News, a high-ranking state offcer said
beneficiaries would retrieve their rights if they filed a suit.
`[The Directorate of] Land and Cadastre entered places where it held
no authority. We have been pursuing the matter for the past three
years,' he said.
`If such repression existed as claimed, then these people would not
have continued living here. People emigrated due to concerns about
terrorism. Now we are collecting input for the archives,' he said.
Some of the Armenians who left their land currently live under Muslim
identities, the official added.
The damages incurred on people who abandoned their villages due to
fear of terrorism will be
compensated in accordance with Article 5233, which was legislated in
2004, if their claims can be verified, he said, adding that villagers
from Acar had already appealed to them. `We are the aggrieved party.
We [the inhabitants of] 38 households hit the road due to fear for our
lives, and we could never return back. We want to return back to our
village, but we are concerned about our security,' Osman (Hovsep)
Demirci, one of the litigants, told the Daily News.
April/27/2012