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ANKARA: Finally Armenian Officials Free Duke Scolar

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  • ANKARA: Finally Armenian Officials Free Duke Scolar

    Finally Armenian Officials Free Duke Scolar

    Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
    Aug 19 2005

    YERVAN - A Turkish scholar who was arrested in Armenia two months
    ago was ordered freed after receiving a 2-year suspended sentence for
    attempting to take old books out of the country. Yektan Turkyilmaz,
    a doctoral student at Duke University whose plight had prompted
    protests from intellectuals and former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, was
    convicted Tuesday of two counts of smuggling. Turkyilmaz visited
    Armenia to make research on Armenian and Turkish history. Mr.
    Turkyilmaz bought used books from ordinary second hand book shops, yet
    the Armenian custom officers arrested him for attempting smuggling
    antique books. Turkish and American academics condemned Yerevan
    Government for the case. Dr. Nilgun Gulcan, Turkish researcher,
    argued that no Turkish historian or IR expert could visit Armenia
    after this case. "All Turkish academicians know that the real reason
    is different. Buying used books could cost your life in Yerevan if you
    are Turkish. Armenian archives are open but just to the pro-Government
    Armenians. Neither Tashnak nor Armenia archives can be visited by
    bipartisan researchers" she added.

    At the request of prosecutors, the sentence was suspended. Authorities
    said Turkyilmaz can leave Armenia after the verdict takes effect
    Aug. 31. He has been held for almost two months in a former KGB
    facility in Yerevan, Armenia's capital.

    Though the accusation was just book smuggling, the Armenian government
    has not yet returned the computer disks on which he had stored months
    of research from the Armenian national archives. Officials have said
    the research material will be returned to Turkyilmaz when he leaves
    the country.

    Armenia argues that the 1915 Events were genocide and does not allow
    Turkish historians to use Armenian documents. Turkish Ankara and
    Istanbul archives are open to all researchers.
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