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Erdogan erases Armenian taboo

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  • Erdogan erases Armenian taboo

    Al-Monitor
    April 24 2014


    Erdogan erases Armenian taboo

    Author: Rasim Ozan KutahyaliPosted April 24, 2014

    A day before the annual commemoration of the 1915 Armenian genocide,
    Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his condolences
    to the grandchildren of those who lost their lives. As the BBC noted,
    Erdogan's message, issued in nine languages, was unprecedented in the
    history of the Turkish republic. Specifically, he said, `We wish that
    the Armenians who lost their lives in the context of the early 20th
    century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to their
    grandchildren.' He also stated, `Millions of people of all religions
    and ethnicities lost their lives in the First World War. Having
    experienced events which had inhumane consequences ' such as
    relocation, during the First World War ' should not prevent Turks and
    Armenians from establishing compassion and mutually humane attitudes
    towards one another.'

    Summary?' Print Most Turks are still conditioned against Armenians, but
    Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's message can help change
    attitudes.
    AuthorRasim Ozan KutahyaliPosted April 24, 2014

    Devlet Bahceli, chairman of the opposition Nationalist Action Party
    (MHP), when asked to comment on Erdogan's statement said, `There is
    nothing to assess here. It is too much to torment this nation like
    this.'

    Faruk Lologlu, deputy chairman of main opposition Republican People's
    Party (CHP), said the most important aspect of Erdogan's statement was
    his use of the word `condolences.' He asserted, `Condolence is a
    sacred notion, so there is no need to take offense.' Lologlu did,
    however, question why, after being in power so long, Erdogan had
    chosen 2014 to make his statement.

    Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu added his voice, stating, `History is
    not black and white. ¦ Everyone needs to show virtue by sharing the
    pains of the past. I hope the hand we extended will be reciprocated.
    Turkey does not make such statements under pressure. It is not a
    declaration made because of timing requirements.'

    Armenia and the Armenian diaspora want the deaths of some 1.5 million
    Armenians forcefully deported during the Ottoman Empire to be
    recognized as genocide. Some 20 countries, including France, Germany,
    Russia and Sweden, recognize the 1915 events as such, but the United
    States, with a large Armenian diaspora, has not yet done so. I am one
    of those Turks who considers the deaths genocide and have openly said
    so in the Turkish media and through Al-Monitor. Many people recognize
    me on the street in Turkey because I am also a TV personality. Some
    Turks support me for this opinion, but others hate me.

    The reality is that in pre-Erdogan Turkey, no one ' whether a
    well-known, popular media figure or someone working in the most
    marginal media ' would have written that the 1915 events were
    genocide. Doing so would have resulted in immediate imprisonment. In
    the Erdogan era, speaking about 1915 has gradually come to be
    accepted. Today in Turkey, the Armenian genocide can be freely
    discussed. Turkey has made significant progress in respect to freedom
    of expression on this and the Kurdish issue.

    Some writers who personally dislike Erdogan and the Gulenist movement,
    whose secretive penetration of the state is now known, still insist on
    presenting an incorrect portrait of Turkey to the world. Sure, some of
    Erdogan's policies have been bad ' there is much to criticize about
    his 11-year rule ' but as prime minister, he has proven that he is a
    leader who learns from his mistakes. He has no immovable obsessions
    and is flexible. His political speeches are provocative, and he stands
    firm against his rivals, but when it comes to official policies, he
    can dispense with rigidity and reverse positions.

    For example, Erdogan's analysis of the situation in Syria was faulty,
    which led to bad policy decisions. With his Syrian policy at an
    impasse, Erdogan is now likely to take a more realistic position. We
    should not ignore, as Mustafa Akyol's analysis for Al-Monitor
    suggests, that Erdogan will be the most important political figure in
    Turkey for the next 10 years. The Erdogan phenomenon must therefore be
    examined impartially, free of personal animosities.

    A prominent Turkish writer who knew and shared my views about the 1915
    Armenian genocide predicted that Erdogan would have me fired from my
    newspaper. I disagreed, saying that I understood Erdogan's approach to
    the Armenian issue, but being a wise politician, he would tackle
    public perceptions step by step and at the end eliminate the taboo
    surrounding 1915. I do not feel that anything justifies portraying
    Erdogan as a reactionary in regard to the Armenian question.

    I asked a friend of mine sensitive about the Armenian issue if he
    would still be unsatisfied if on April 24, 2015, Erdogan traveled to
    Yerevan as the new president of Turkey, prayed for the genocide's
    victims and laid a wreath on their memorial. His response was that
    Erdogan should not be the president of Turkey, and that we had to be
    freed of the man. My friend was accepting that anyone other than
    Erdogan become president, even if he was a fascist who would justify
    what we did to the Armenians.

    Erdogan's Turkey will from now on confront 1915. Many more steps could
    follow in 2015. When it comes to facing up to the past, Erdogan is far
    ahead of his party and cabinet. Davutoglu's comment on the issue was
    in a language reminiscent of the Kemalist diplomatic tradition.
    Turkish diplomacy under Davutolgu must support Erdogan's courageous
    move and not create obstructions for Erdogan.

    With Erdogan's statement on 1915, the last taboo of the Turkish
    republic is gone. True, most people still think as they were
    conditioned to by Kemalist Turkish nationalists, but Erdogan's
    approach will soften this unaccommodating mentality. Erdogan is a
    leader who can change the minds of people. The Turkish nation must,
    indeed, convey our condolences to the grandchildren of our Armenian
    brothers and sisters massacred by the Talat Pasha government in 1915.
    In this, Erdogan has once again proven to the world that he is not a
    leader from the usual mold. Those assessing Turkey in Washington must
    take care to accurately analyze the Erdogan phenomenon.


    http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/04/armenian-genocide-erdogan-message-condolences.html#

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