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ANKARA MAYOR'S REMARKS ON ARMENIANS, PKK DRAW CONTROVERSY
10.16.2014 12:05 epress.am
Ankara Mayor Melih Gökcek made provocative remarks concerning Kurds,
Armenians and atheists on his Twitter page on Tuesday, reports
Today's Zaman.
The mayor shared three consecutive tweets about Kurds, religion,
and Armenians. He first shared a video from the Cihan news agency
containing old footage of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) members
entertaining other PKK members with a comedy skit poking fun at salat
(Islamic ritualistic prayer). Alongside the video, the mayor commented:
"It's these types of PKK [members] that don't want a peace process
or an end to war. They are the enemies of Islam. Here is proof."
He continued in another tweet, "Peace to the Kurds in the east who
are putting their lives on the line for the nation and solidarity
and for Islam." In his next tweet, Gökcek continued, "But there are
those posing as Kurds but are actually Armenian atheists... (By the
way, I absolve our Armenian brothers and sisters that are citizens
of their nation.)" The mayor later deleted two of the controversial
tweets (keeping the one with the video), though Twitter users were
quick to respond with comments.
What the mayor is referring to are "hidden" Armenians who were often
forcefully Islamified and Kurdified among Kurds in the Dersim mountains
to avoid continued persecution during the Genocide of Armenians in
1915. There are Armenians among Alevi and Turkish communities as well.
Hayko Bagdat, an Armenian columnist for the Taraf daily, tweeted
back to the mayor, "Which category do I fall under, boss?" Later,
Today's Zaman spoke over the phone with Bagdat, asking him about his
views on the matter, and he explained: "This is plain racism. It's
prejudice on many levels. It's not just against one demographic of
people but against several: Armenians, Kurds, atheists. It is hate
speech, and if this [Turkey] were a civil country then he [Gökcek]
would be removed from his position for these remarks. But these types
of remarks have become commonplace with [Justice and Development Party]
AK Party politicians, we see it in the president."
In August, a similar incident involving racist comments came from
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan just two weeks before the presidential
elections. During a television broadcast on Star TV and NTV, President
Erdogan said: "Let all Turks in Turkey say they are Turks and all Kurds
say they are Kurds. What is wrong with that? You wouldn't believe the
things they have said about me. They have said I am Georgian ... they
have said even uglier things -- they have called me Armenian, but I
am Turkish." Criticisms were raised about Erdogan's assertion that
being Armenian is "uglier" than being Georgian.
The mayor's Twitter account continuously draws public attention, as
Gökcek is known to tweet on many topics regardless of their relevance
to his political responsibilities. He has over 2 million followers.
The original article has been changed to add further context to issues
discussed in the article.
http://www.epress.am/en/2014/10/16/ankara-mayors-remarks-on-armenians-pkk-draw-controversy.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
10.16.2014 12:05 epress.am
Ankara Mayor Melih Gökcek made provocative remarks concerning Kurds,
Armenians and atheists on his Twitter page on Tuesday, reports
Today's Zaman.
The mayor shared three consecutive tweets about Kurds, religion,
and Armenians. He first shared a video from the Cihan news agency
containing old footage of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) members
entertaining other PKK members with a comedy skit poking fun at salat
(Islamic ritualistic prayer). Alongside the video, the mayor commented:
"It's these types of PKK [members] that don't want a peace process
or an end to war. They are the enemies of Islam. Here is proof."
He continued in another tweet, "Peace to the Kurds in the east who
are putting their lives on the line for the nation and solidarity
and for Islam." In his next tweet, Gökcek continued, "But there are
those posing as Kurds but are actually Armenian atheists... (By the
way, I absolve our Armenian brothers and sisters that are citizens
of their nation.)" The mayor later deleted two of the controversial
tweets (keeping the one with the video), though Twitter users were
quick to respond with comments.
What the mayor is referring to are "hidden" Armenians who were often
forcefully Islamified and Kurdified among Kurds in the Dersim mountains
to avoid continued persecution during the Genocide of Armenians in
1915. There are Armenians among Alevi and Turkish communities as well.
Hayko Bagdat, an Armenian columnist for the Taraf daily, tweeted
back to the mayor, "Which category do I fall under, boss?" Later,
Today's Zaman spoke over the phone with Bagdat, asking him about his
views on the matter, and he explained: "This is plain racism. It's
prejudice on many levels. It's not just against one demographic of
people but against several: Armenians, Kurds, atheists. It is hate
speech, and if this [Turkey] were a civil country then he [Gökcek]
would be removed from his position for these remarks. But these types
of remarks have become commonplace with [Justice and Development Party]
AK Party politicians, we see it in the president."
In August, a similar incident involving racist comments came from
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan just two weeks before the presidential
elections. During a television broadcast on Star TV and NTV, President
Erdogan said: "Let all Turks in Turkey say they are Turks and all Kurds
say they are Kurds. What is wrong with that? You wouldn't believe the
things they have said about me. They have said I am Georgian ... they
have said even uglier things -- they have called me Armenian, but I
am Turkish." Criticisms were raised about Erdogan's assertion that
being Armenian is "uglier" than being Georgian.
The mayor's Twitter account continuously draws public attention, as
Gökcek is known to tweet on many topics regardless of their relevance
to his political responsibilities. He has over 2 million followers.
The original article has been changed to add further context to issues
discussed in the article.
http://www.epress.am/en/2014/10/16/ankara-mayors-remarks-on-armenians-pkk-draw-controversy.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress