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ANKARA: Poll suggests great mutual ignorance in Turkey, Armenia

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  • ANKARA: Poll suggests great mutual ignorance in Turkey, Armenia

    Poll suggests great mutual ignorance in Turkey, Armenia

    NTV Online web site, Istanbul
    28 Mar 05

    A study entitled "Project on mutual perceptions of citizens of Armenia
    and Turkey" suggests a very high level of ignorance in the two
    countries about each other.

    The study conducted in the two countries jointly by TESEV [Turkish
    Economic and Social Studies Foundation] from Turkey and HASA or the
    Social Sciences Centre in Armenia is aimed at revealing prejudices in
    the two societies. Polls conducted among 1,200 respondents in Turkey
    and 1,000 respondents in Armenia suggest that Turks and Armenians know
    little about each other.

    TESEV and HASA, which conducted the study over a two-year period,
    include in the conclusions of their report the following assessment
    which is very important in terms of the resolution of the Armenian
    problem:

    "The two neighbouring nations do not know each other. Armenians hold
    more unequivocal and negative views about Turkey. Despite these
    adversities both countries have the psychological foundation necessary
    for a dialogue."

    The study shows that the people of Turkey and Armenia are seriously
    ignorant about each other. For example, 17 per cent of the respondents
    from Turkey believe that Armenians are Jewish.

    Another area of ignorance is related to the government forms in the
    two countries. For example 13.5 per cent of the respondents from
    Turkey are certain that Armenia is run by a communist
    party. Conversely, 6 per cent of the Armenian respondents think that
    there is still a monarchy in Turkey.

    The study suggests that the Armenians are more prejudiced in terms of
    their perceptions of the other side. For example, while 68.7 per cent
    of Armenians describe Turks with derogatory adjectives, only 34 per
    cent of Turks think the same way about Armenians.

    Another piece of information that echoes mutual prejudices is that
    94.1 per cent of the Armenian respondents and 68 per cent of the
    Turkish respondents would not allow their daughters to marry a man
    from the other group. Similarly 67 per cent of Armenians said they
    would not trust a Turkish doctor compared to 24 per cent of Turks who
    said they would not trust an Armenian doctor.

    The TESEV-HASA study also seeks answers for the future relations of
    the two countries. Approximately 30 per cent of Armenians think that
    "prejudices on both sides are blocking relations". The corresponding
    figure for Turkish respondents is 24 per cent.

    The most dominant view shared by 37.4 per cent of Armenian respondents
    and 30.8 per cent of Turkish respondents is that "relations will
    remain as they are now in the near future". In addition, 81.7 per cent
    of Armenians see the "genocide" issue as the most important hurdle
    blocking the normalization of relations. In contrast only 19 per cent
    of Turks see genocide allegations as the biggest obstacle blocking
    relations.
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