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Armenians jeopardized in Istanbul
Massacres of the Christian population of the Ottoman Empire and its
successor Turkey are an integral part of the country's domestic
policy.
Every now and then, Istanbul turns into a city that poses extreme
danger to Armenians. This does not mean it had been safe otherwise;
still, sometimes Armenians are facing really hard times. Massacres of
1955 which affected Armenians and Jews along with the Greeks were
meticulously planned within Turkey's state policy.
January 26, 2013
PanARMENIAN.Net - Massacres of the Christian population of the Ottoman
Empire and its successor Turkey are an integral part of the country's
domestic policy. Currently 98% of Istanbul population identify
themselves as ethnic Turks and name the Turkish language as their
mother tongue. Meanwhile, the origin of Istanbul citizens is quite
diverse, reflecting the complex migration processes in the Ottoman
Empire. Despite absolute prevalence of Turkish, the very Turkic
genetic element is not very significant among the inhabitants of
Turkey (let alone Istanbul), accounting for not more than one third.
This phenomenon can be explained by intense Islamization and
`Turkization' of non-Turkic nations, the Christians and Jews in the
first place who constituted most part of the city's population until
mid-15th century.
There are approximately 60 000 Armenians in Istanbul today who live in
constant fear. Assassination of Hrant Dink 6 years ago seemed to cool
down the Turkish nationalists; it did not happen, though. Actually,
this couldn't have happened anyway because neither the police nor the
state stirred a finger to protect the lives of their own citizens,
particularly when Armenians, number one enemy for the Turkish state
are involved. However, Istanbul Armenians do not want to put up with
it; they say they live in their homeland and are not Diaspora, which
is not quite true, in fact. Their homeland, namely Western Armenia was
lost long ago, and Armenians are tolerated in Istanbul through habit
or out of political necessity.
It should be reminded that one of the oldest members of Istanbul's
Armenian community, 85-year-old Maritsa Kucuk was brutally killed on
December 28, 2012. The old woman was beaten and stabbed, then
beheaded. Kucuk's son Zadik found her body. `It was dark inside when I
entered the house, and mom was lying on the floor. I thought she had
fallen down. Then I saw her body all in blood. She lay naked, and she
had a cross sign on her chest,' Zadik told Agos paper. Another elderly
Armenian woman was robbed and killed in early December 2012.
On January 6, three unknown people attempted to abduct another old
Armenian woman but failed to do this.
On January 10, IT teacher of the Armenian `Aramian' school Ilker
Shahin was found dead in his house in Istanbul. Shahin was stabbed in
the throat three days prior to being found.
Two elderly Armenian women were assaulted in Istanbul on January 22
and 23. Sultan Aykar, 83 was attacked and beaten near her house. The
masked aggressor was scared away by neighbours who heard Aykar's
cries. The witnesses described the attacker as a brunet aged 35-40
dressed in black. The attack left Aykar blind in one eye despite the
surgery she underwent. On January 23, two unidentified persons
attacked another old Armenian woman in the street near Samatia school;
they beat her and then left. According to eye-witnesses, the victim,
all in blood, hurried to leave, too. A criminal case is launched on
this incident; however, the practice of such proceedings in Turkey is
widely known by the example of Hrant Dink's murderer's trial.
With all this going on, the fact that Armenians, mostly women, go to
Turkey for work, mostly unskilled one and are actually unprotected,
cannot but cause concerns. There are no diplomatic relations between
Armenia and Turkey, and there hardly be any in the near future, so
Armenian citizens have no one to address in case of trouble. In this
regard, it is worth mentioning that Turkey is not the only option for
earning one's living. There are no guarantees that children of these
people also leaving for Turkey will maintain their Armenian identity.
They will definitely face assimilation, and those who survive will
just dissolve in the 70 million Turkic environment; that's the
reality.
The Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan changed the Minister for Internal
Affairs; the former mayor of Istanbul Muammer Guler has taken up the
position now. The move was hardly sparked by the recent assaults
against Armenians. Istanbul is facing constant terrorist attacks, and
Guler is expected to stop the wave of violence perhaps. He will hardly
succeed in this though; the Kurds, the perpetrators, are not going to
surrender until independent Kurdistan is proclaimed. This will mark
the end of Turkey which will simply fall to pieces burying the
Christians first.
Karine Ter-Sahakian
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/details/143001/
From: A. Papazian
Massacres of the Christian population of the Ottoman Empire and its
successor Turkey are an integral part of the country's domestic
policy.
Every now and then, Istanbul turns into a city that poses extreme
danger to Armenians. This does not mean it had been safe otherwise;
still, sometimes Armenians are facing really hard times. Massacres of
1955 which affected Armenians and Jews along with the Greeks were
meticulously planned within Turkey's state policy.
January 26, 2013
PanARMENIAN.Net - Massacres of the Christian population of the Ottoman
Empire and its successor Turkey are an integral part of the country's
domestic policy. Currently 98% of Istanbul population identify
themselves as ethnic Turks and name the Turkish language as their
mother tongue. Meanwhile, the origin of Istanbul citizens is quite
diverse, reflecting the complex migration processes in the Ottoman
Empire. Despite absolute prevalence of Turkish, the very Turkic
genetic element is not very significant among the inhabitants of
Turkey (let alone Istanbul), accounting for not more than one third.
This phenomenon can be explained by intense Islamization and
`Turkization' of non-Turkic nations, the Christians and Jews in the
first place who constituted most part of the city's population until
mid-15th century.
There are approximately 60 000 Armenians in Istanbul today who live in
constant fear. Assassination of Hrant Dink 6 years ago seemed to cool
down the Turkish nationalists; it did not happen, though. Actually,
this couldn't have happened anyway because neither the police nor the
state stirred a finger to protect the lives of their own citizens,
particularly when Armenians, number one enemy for the Turkish state
are involved. However, Istanbul Armenians do not want to put up with
it; they say they live in their homeland and are not Diaspora, which
is not quite true, in fact. Their homeland, namely Western Armenia was
lost long ago, and Armenians are tolerated in Istanbul through habit
or out of political necessity.
It should be reminded that one of the oldest members of Istanbul's
Armenian community, 85-year-old Maritsa Kucuk was brutally killed on
December 28, 2012. The old woman was beaten and stabbed, then
beheaded. Kucuk's son Zadik found her body. `It was dark inside when I
entered the house, and mom was lying on the floor. I thought she had
fallen down. Then I saw her body all in blood. She lay naked, and she
had a cross sign on her chest,' Zadik told Agos paper. Another elderly
Armenian woman was robbed and killed in early December 2012.
On January 6, three unknown people attempted to abduct another old
Armenian woman but failed to do this.
On January 10, IT teacher of the Armenian `Aramian' school Ilker
Shahin was found dead in his house in Istanbul. Shahin was stabbed in
the throat three days prior to being found.
Two elderly Armenian women were assaulted in Istanbul on January 22
and 23. Sultan Aykar, 83 was attacked and beaten near her house. The
masked aggressor was scared away by neighbours who heard Aykar's
cries. The witnesses described the attacker as a brunet aged 35-40
dressed in black. The attack left Aykar blind in one eye despite the
surgery she underwent. On January 23, two unidentified persons
attacked another old Armenian woman in the street near Samatia school;
they beat her and then left. According to eye-witnesses, the victim,
all in blood, hurried to leave, too. A criminal case is launched on
this incident; however, the practice of such proceedings in Turkey is
widely known by the example of Hrant Dink's murderer's trial.
With all this going on, the fact that Armenians, mostly women, go to
Turkey for work, mostly unskilled one and are actually unprotected,
cannot but cause concerns. There are no diplomatic relations between
Armenia and Turkey, and there hardly be any in the near future, so
Armenian citizens have no one to address in case of trouble. In this
regard, it is worth mentioning that Turkey is not the only option for
earning one's living. There are no guarantees that children of these
people also leaving for Turkey will maintain their Armenian identity.
They will definitely face assimilation, and those who survive will
just dissolve in the 70 million Turkic environment; that's the
reality.
The Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan changed the Minister for Internal
Affairs; the former mayor of Istanbul Muammer Guler has taken up the
position now. The move was hardly sparked by the recent assaults
against Armenians. Istanbul is facing constant terrorist attacks, and
Guler is expected to stop the wave of violence perhaps. He will hardly
succeed in this though; the Kurds, the perpetrators, are not going to
surrender until independent Kurdistan is proclaimed. This will mark
the end of Turkey which will simply fall to pieces burying the
Christians first.
Karine Ter-Sahakian
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/details/143001/
From: A. Papazian