Turkish “apology to Armenians” aims to improve relations

Effort launched by intellectuals, denounced by political leaders

by Emil Sanamyan

Published: Thursday December 18, 2008

At the funeral of Hrant Dink in Istanbul, Jan. 22, 2007. Ara Sarafian

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Washington - "My conscience does not accept the insensitivity showed to and the denial of the Great Catastrophe that the Ottoman Armenians were subjected to in 1915. I reject this injustice and for my share, I empathize with the feelings and pain of my Armenian brothers and sisters. I apologize to them."

This is the English-language translation of a statement initiated by about 200 Turkish intellectuals at a web site called, "We Apologize" (http://www.ozurdiliyoruz.com/), on December 15. More than 13,000 Turks had signed on to the statement within the first few days of its launch.

The Armenian Reporter asked some of the U.S.-based signers, most of them university students from Turkey, about the meaning of the statement and what they hoped it might accomplish.

"I strongly believe that Turkish and Armenian people should start understanding each other," Sanem Soyarslan, 32, a doctoral candidate in philosophy at Duke University, wrote in an e-mail. And this "cannot start unless Turkish people ‘recognize' the pain and suffering of Armenian people."

"For me, it is a matter of personal conscience," Ms. Soyarslan explained. "I am sorry for the terrible things that Armenian people suffered in 1915. And I want to express that."

"I believe that Turks and Armenians can be good friends by developing mutual understanding towards each other, I mean each others' pains and sorrows," agreed another signer, Kivanc Ozcan, 25.

A graduate student at George Washington University's Middle East studies program, Mr. Ozcan added, "This petition shows that there are different opinions in Turkey towards the Armenian issue. This petition marks the rejection of state stance towards the issue."

The signatories were asked to provide their full name, occupation, and location. Most of the signers identified themselves as students or professionals - educators, journalists, lawyers, doctors, scientists, engineers, economists and business people who use the Internet on a daily or even hourly basis. But signers also include workers, farmers, taxi drivers, and at least one New Jersey gas station attendant.

The vast majority of the signers were in Istanbul and other large cities of Turkey. Turks living in Germany and other European countries also make up a substantial portion.

Some of the more prominent figures among the signers include journalists Ali Bayramoglu, Oral Çalislar, Ece Temelkuran, Mine G. Kirikkanat, and Cengiz Candar, writers Perihan Magden and Tuna Kiremitci, academics Murat Belge and Baskin Oran, singer Yavuz Bingöl, and leader of Germany's influential Greens Party Cem Ozdemir.

Symbolically, among the signers is journalist Hasan Cemal, a grandson of Jemal Pasha, one of the Ottoman leaders in the years of the Genocide, who was subsequently assassinated by Armenians.

Denouncements and criticisms

The statement has been criticized both by Turkish nationalists and by those saying it does not go far enough in recognizing the Armenian Genocide.

President Abdullah Gül refrained from criticizing the statement, calling it an example of "democratic discussion." But more influential Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan called the statement "irrational" and "wrong," and said that he "personally does not accept, support or participate in this campaign."

"I have not committed a crime. Why should I apologize?" Mr. Erdogan wondered when asked about the statement on December 17, EuroNews TV reported.

A group of 60 retired Turkish diplomats, some of them now parliament members from the nationalist opposition Republican People's Party, issued a statement calling the statement "unfair, wrong and unfavorable to national interests," according to The Associated Press.

Leaders of the National Action Party, a quasi-fascist opposition group represented in parliament, called the initiative an "insult to the Turkish nation."

At the same time, civil rights activist Aytekin Yildiz told Zaman newspaper on December 5 that while the statement was "a good starting point, but not enough."

"Firstly, what do they mean by ["Great Catastrophe"]? Let's name it, it is genocide. Secondly, the state has to apologize," said Mr. Yildiz.

The term "Great Catastrophe" is a translation of the Armenian language name for the Armenian Genocide, "Metz Yeghern."

Previously, President George W. Bush and the late Pope John Paul II, in apparent efforts not to stir the aggravation of the Turkish government by using the term genocide, referred to "Metz Yeghern" either in Armenian or English translation in their statements.  

Armenian reaction

Most commentators in Armenia and the diaspora praised the statement.

"Such statements were inconceivable several years ago," Alexander Iskandarian of the Yerevan-based Caucasus Institute told PanArmenian.net. The very fact of this statement shows the newly acquired level of independence that Turkish society has from its government, he noted.

Ruben Safrastian, who heads the Middle East studies department at the National Academy of Sciences, told PanArmenian.net, "the campaign reflected the Turkish public's desire to confess, clear, and dissociate itself from the sad heritage of the Ottoman Empire.