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ULTRA-NATIONALIST GROUP TARGETS TURKEY'S ARMENIANS
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Nov 28 2012
28 November 2012 / HANIFE SEVDE KOSE / E. BARIÅ~^ ALTINTAÅ~^, Ä°STANBUL
An ultra-right group mainly active in the social media has been
targeting Armenian agencies, schools, churches, foundations and
individuals in Turkey as part of an anti-Armenian hate campaign.
Reactions by social media users have mounted over provocative tweets
from the chairman of a group that calls itself the International
Association to Fight Unfounded Armenian Allegations (ASÄ°M-DER). He has
recently been actively targeting Armenians and Turkish-Armenian
institutions on Twitter, claiming that these groups are part of a
conspiracy supported by the Armenian diaspora against Turkey.
ASİM-DER Chairman Göksel Gulbey has been tweeting the names of
Turkish-Armenian schools, churches and foundations, which civil
society members say is tantamount to turning them into targets for
ultra-nationalists in a country where prominent figures of Armenian
descent as well as Christians involved in missionary activities have
become targets of violence. The 2007 killings of three Bible
publishers in Malatya, the 2007 murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink and the 2006 murder of an Italian priest in Trabzon are
some of the painful examples of the ultra-nationalist threat.
The group, founded in 2002, has been actively holding conferences and
organizing events to promote its cause, with its chairman saying they
had provisional and regional branches as well as a few chapters
located abroad. But it came under the national media spotlight earlier
this week, mostly due to the recent tweets.
According to Taraf columnist Markar Esayan, the campaign is part of a
larger plan to create an anti-minority atmosphere. Esayan, in remarks
to Today's Zaman, recalled Turkey's past experiences with the
demonization of Turkish Armenians and said, "These Turkish-Armenian
schools [whose addresses have been tweeted by Gulbey] were established
under the control of the Ministry of Education. I have also studied in
one of these schools and worked as a supervisor afterwards. On the one
hand, too much importance shouldn't be attached to such campaigns, but
on the other hand, those responsible [for provocative claims] should
be held accountable for their claims," he said, adding that
prosecutors should act.
Rober KoptaÅ~_, editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos,
also asserted that ASÄ°M-DER's presence is the product of a deeper and
darker mentality than mere nationalism. KoptaÅ~_ said: "Gulbey argues
that the existence of Armenian institutions is proof of Turkey's
freedom and tolerance. So, according to [Gulbey], the activities of
Armenian institutions in Turkey are not acceptable as they pursue
'demonic' goals. ... This approach, which associates the Armenian
ethnicity directly with hostility and malignity, is a threat to our
national peace."
KoptaÅ~_ also noted that illegal structures nested within the state
hierarchy in Turkey -- referred to as the "deep state" -- frequently
resort to anti-minority campaigns to create chaos and achieve their
shady goals. The involvement of such groups was also evident in the
trial regarding Dink's murder. After a lengthy process, the court
found that the killer and one man who was found guilty of inciting the
shooter to undertake the murder had acted alone, although a large body
of evidence indicated an organized-crime link. The judge who heard the
case later told the media that he was also certain that the two hadn't
acted alone, but accused the prosecution of failing to prove it
properly.
"Turkey cannot afford a new wave of hostility against its Armenian
citizens," warned KoptaÅ~_.
ASÄ°M-DER Chairman Gulbey denied the claims that his organization was
"targeting" any groups. He said the lists he tweeted consisted of
publicly disclosed address data about Turkish-Armenian institutions,
saying there are too many in Turkey. "When we said in a press
statement that there are 57 foundations, 21 schools and 15
associations, we were accused of lying and exaggerating numbers." He
said they had to share the names and address information to refute
these claims.
In response to a question on whether he would feel responsible if an
assault occurred on any of the organizations he publicly tweeted
about, Gulbey didn't directly respond, but said he wondered if any
Armenian organizations would be upset if he was attacked by an
Armenian radical.
He also said they were "concerned" that these groups were associated
with the Armenian diaspora, admitting that his group's statements were
only "allegations" with no solid proof.
Several rights groups are preparing to file a criminal complaint
against ASÄ°M-DER with prosecutors this week.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-299589-.html#.ULajDLfa0-A.facebook
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Nov 28 2012
28 November 2012 / HANIFE SEVDE KOSE / E. BARIÅ~^ ALTINTAÅ~^, Ä°STANBUL
An ultra-right group mainly active in the social media has been
targeting Armenian agencies, schools, churches, foundations and
individuals in Turkey as part of an anti-Armenian hate campaign.
Reactions by social media users have mounted over provocative tweets
from the chairman of a group that calls itself the International
Association to Fight Unfounded Armenian Allegations (ASÄ°M-DER). He has
recently been actively targeting Armenians and Turkish-Armenian
institutions on Twitter, claiming that these groups are part of a
conspiracy supported by the Armenian diaspora against Turkey.
ASİM-DER Chairman Göksel Gulbey has been tweeting the names of
Turkish-Armenian schools, churches and foundations, which civil
society members say is tantamount to turning them into targets for
ultra-nationalists in a country where prominent figures of Armenian
descent as well as Christians involved in missionary activities have
become targets of violence. The 2007 killings of three Bible
publishers in Malatya, the 2007 murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink and the 2006 murder of an Italian priest in Trabzon are
some of the painful examples of the ultra-nationalist threat.
The group, founded in 2002, has been actively holding conferences and
organizing events to promote its cause, with its chairman saying they
had provisional and regional branches as well as a few chapters
located abroad. But it came under the national media spotlight earlier
this week, mostly due to the recent tweets.
According to Taraf columnist Markar Esayan, the campaign is part of a
larger plan to create an anti-minority atmosphere. Esayan, in remarks
to Today's Zaman, recalled Turkey's past experiences with the
demonization of Turkish Armenians and said, "These Turkish-Armenian
schools [whose addresses have been tweeted by Gulbey] were established
under the control of the Ministry of Education. I have also studied in
one of these schools and worked as a supervisor afterwards. On the one
hand, too much importance shouldn't be attached to such campaigns, but
on the other hand, those responsible [for provocative claims] should
be held accountable for their claims," he said, adding that
prosecutors should act.
Rober KoptaÅ~_, editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos,
also asserted that ASÄ°M-DER's presence is the product of a deeper and
darker mentality than mere nationalism. KoptaÅ~_ said: "Gulbey argues
that the existence of Armenian institutions is proof of Turkey's
freedom and tolerance. So, according to [Gulbey], the activities of
Armenian institutions in Turkey are not acceptable as they pursue
'demonic' goals. ... This approach, which associates the Armenian
ethnicity directly with hostility and malignity, is a threat to our
national peace."
KoptaÅ~_ also noted that illegal structures nested within the state
hierarchy in Turkey -- referred to as the "deep state" -- frequently
resort to anti-minority campaigns to create chaos and achieve their
shady goals. The involvement of such groups was also evident in the
trial regarding Dink's murder. After a lengthy process, the court
found that the killer and one man who was found guilty of inciting the
shooter to undertake the murder had acted alone, although a large body
of evidence indicated an organized-crime link. The judge who heard the
case later told the media that he was also certain that the two hadn't
acted alone, but accused the prosecution of failing to prove it
properly.
"Turkey cannot afford a new wave of hostility against its Armenian
citizens," warned KoptaÅ~_.
ASÄ°M-DER Chairman Gulbey denied the claims that his organization was
"targeting" any groups. He said the lists he tweeted consisted of
publicly disclosed address data about Turkish-Armenian institutions,
saying there are too many in Turkey. "When we said in a press
statement that there are 57 foundations, 21 schools and 15
associations, we were accused of lying and exaggerating numbers." He
said they had to share the names and address information to refute
these claims.
In response to a question on whether he would feel responsible if an
assault occurred on any of the organizations he publicly tweeted
about, Gulbey didn't directly respond, but said he wondered if any
Armenian organizations would be upset if he was attacked by an
Armenian radical.
He also said they were "concerned" that these groups were associated
with the Armenian diaspora, admitting that his group's statements were
only "allegations" with no solid proof.
Several rights groups are preparing to file a criminal complaint
against ASÄ°M-DER with prosecutors this week.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-299589-.html#.ULajDLfa0-A.facebook