BY HENRY D. ASTARJIAN M.D.
So, this is Turkey inside out, with the inside being its underbelly; exposed, soft, and vulnerable. Despite its genuine structural weaknesses, Institutional Turkey continues to colonize the non-Turkic inhabitants of Turkey; the Kurds and other minorities, who suffer ethnic, cultural and educational oppression.
For nearly a century we have been in a wake, mourning our 1.5 million dead in the Genocide, but have forgotten, mostly ignored, our “living dead”; a million or so Armenians who have been forcefully converted to Islam, carrying the ID of a Turk.
For nearly a century we have ignored the cries of these people; “Please save us!”, which had resonated in our post-Genocidal conscience. The Nation, which had barely survived the Genocide and in shell shock, could barely care for itself, let alone rescue the lamb from the jaws of the wolf. Despite that, there were some rescues, but not from Turkey. Some Arab tribes, mainly the Mujhhims (Shammars), had saved some Armenian children from the Syrian Desert, Der-el-Zor. My uncle by marriage Dickran, was an accomplice in “Kidnapping” some of these girls from their Arab “Savers”, and bringing them to Mosul.
That was a triumph, but that was all. There were some similar, sporadic anecdotes, but not more.
As time passed their cries echoed fainter and fainter, until now, when, despite the loudness of their cry; “Please save us!” it faintly echoes in the empty chambers of our memories.
Diaspora is oblivious to their calls, and the leadership is ignorant, more correctly inept in handling the problem; they are busy pursuing the cause of the dead in a bloody Genocide, ignoring the cause of the victims of the bloodless Genocide (My uncle called it ‘Red Genocide and White Genocide’) ignoring their inherent duty to do something, something which could take many forms.
We have to learn from the others: the United States Armed Forces do not leave any soldier, dead or alive, behind. Israel has one captive soldier with Hamas, and they are raising hell to get him back. The issue holds a prime importance in their conduct of diplomacy to bring Shallet home. They negotiated the release of a thousand Palestinian prisoners for the release of their single soldier.
In Kurdish American meetings, which I have attended, at least two dozen Kurds have anonymously confided in me that their grandmother, sometimes grandfather, is Armenian, and they consider themselves both Kurds and Armenians. They invariably have questioned, rhetorically, “What have we gained from being Muslims?” These few words speak volumes. I had Kemal, a polite semi-educated “Turk”, who said his mother was Armenian, but “Please keep it a secret”; even though he had become a naturalized American, he was afraid of some kind of retaliation against his relatives in Turkey. A doctor friend of mine from Elazig (Kharpert) told me that his grandmother was Armenian, and the only word he learned from her was “Parehgam” (Friend). There are the Hemshins in the Trabizon area, who have collectively converted to Islam, but they are Armenians, and proud of it too.
Demographic diversity in Turkey- unlike the United States where it is an asset- spells disaster for the country, because of Turks hegemony and colonization of its minority citizens, especially of the not-so-minor population of Kurds who constitute approximately one third of Turkey’s population.
The persecution of this large segment of the population creates nothing less than resentment, hatred, contempt, and armed struggle, the way it has been conducted by the armed Kurds. The dynamics of their rebellion is the same as that of the Armenians who had no choice, but to bear arms to defend their hamlets and villages.
Another persecuted notable group is the Alevis, the Shi’a, not Sunni Alevis who gladly accepted the converted Armenian into their Islamic fold.
There is no doubt that the converts to Islam, though half or quarter Armenian, given the freedom that they deserve, will claim their ethnic origin as theirs, and join forces with the Kurds to reclaim their land. The Kurds realize, and I have articulated this in my speeches to the Kurdish Parliament in Exile (Brussels), that our causes meet, and that our causes are intertwined, that we have a common enemy, and that we are a de-facto presence in Anatolia, and that our rights on the land is reserved by the Sevres Treaty, which also gave us the Wilsonian Map. It is clear that a unilateral rapprochement between the Kurds and the Turks, must not be at the expense of Western Armenia. Given all that, we should have no problems with the Kurds.
It is incumbent upon our leadership to pursue the matter in earnest and fight for it as if the White Genocide is the continuation of the red Genocide. We are already a century late.
Some say it takes a miracle. Others who have the faith say yes we can! Yes we can take back Western Armenia, but only if we have the resolve, if we have the guts, and if we mobilize our forces, in toto. Yes we can succeed in re-creating Western Armenia, which then can fulfill the promise of Miatsial Azad Angakh Hayastan (United, Free, and Sovereign Armenia) in earnest. Until then the title remains as it is; a slogan.
And what about those who refuse to join you and say that they are content with their situation? How will they be dealt with?
If they are content with their situation… then… let them stay where they are…. there are so many like them in Yerevan. Perhaps some day their children/grandchildren will join us who will cherish our Historic Homeland, where our forefathers have spilled their blood to protect the Armenian Nation for thousands of years.
The article discusses taking over land from another country. My original comments apply mainly to the people living on that land, since that is the subject of the article, but my comments can also apply, as you interpret them, to the people who will supposedly be motivated to participate in an armed invasion of another country. But how will the people already living on that land be dealt with if they are content with their situation, meaning that they will see a sudden change in government as a threat and will likely not accept it? How will they be dealt with?
And you don’t really answer the question of how those who will supposedly be motivated for war be dealt with if they refuse to participate in an armed invasion. Will they be required to finance the armed invasion? What if they refuse?
I am a Turk, and I highly admire Hrant Dink’s opinions.
The opinions expressed here are generally racist and/or nationalist. They seek solution on the basis of acquiring land and letting certain nationality live on that land. Such ideas are criminal and will bring more suffering to Armenians, Kurds and consequentially to also Turks. I suggest everyone to read the articles and tha speeches of Hrant Dink over and over. He championed the maximum level of dialog between the the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Turkey, and so maximum level of relations between the peoples of two neighbor countries. Diaspora Armenians are not in the same spiritual position as the Armenians living in Armenia and in Turkey. With the words of Hrant Dink, diaspora Armenians view the problem from the bottom of a 1915 m deep well, and they have no desire to come out of the well and observe the full picture.
Governments of Armenia, Turkey and Azerbaijan should do their best to remove any and all barriers between Armenia, Turkey and Azerbaijan. Only if three peoples will mutually interact on all fields, then enmities will start ceasing and friendly relations will flourish. The peoples will not let their governments to seed enmity between themselves any more if such atmosphere is achieved.
Bayram, Diaspora Armenians, especially the ones who post here, viewed Hrant Dink with contempt when he was alive. He was somebody to ridicule, especially because of his last name. Now, he is victim number 1.5 million + 1, his face is used for posters. But his ideas are still contemptuously rejected.
Absolutely let us not forget Western Armenia and even more so, let us work for it’s return to Armenian sovereignty. The Kurdish people are connected in this issue as well. Let Armenians and Kurds sit down together and talk these issues through, create a plan, then implement it. An important part of this would likely be to reclaim those of Armenian ancestory who would like to again be Armenians. Let us encourage and help them in any way we can.
Just imagine what it would be like for Turkey to suddenly wake up one day with over a million Armenians within it’s borders. It’s achievable. Lets make it happen.
In about a 100 years there are 4 generations, if the first /second generation were Armenian, the identity keeps on getting diluted as you go along with the 4th generation knowing nothing of their predecessors. I agree with La, you always have the silent majority who are content with their situation how will you deal with them
The Turkish Oppression, the Kurdish revolt keeps them on their toes, not to mention frustration of their survivor parent’s clan being wiped-out!
“We should have no problems with the Kurds?” Go read your history and don’t be naive!
Further, how do you propose we administer a Western Armenia with 12 Million Kurds? They will be the majority!
Panos, you are mistaken…most Kurds live further south of historical Armenian lands, close to the Iraqi and Syrian borders.
If you look at the Wilsonian map, most of Turkey’s 20 million Kurds live “just about” south of the (Wilsonian) border. There are, however, Kurdish tribes, that live on land leased from the Turkish landowners. These tribes will absolutely have no problem vacating Armenian lands if asked. I as a Kurd, have absolutely no problem packing up and moving out. The Wilsonian map clearly shows all historical Armenian lands, and they belong to you, and every inch of it, too.
However, historical Armenian lands, from Black sea and on, are inhabited mostly by ethnic turks, and in the Black sea area of historical Armenia, there still are Islamized Armenians called the Hamshen, who number about 100,000(???) I have had the opportunity to visit and meet Hamshens, some of whom speak the Western dialect of the Armenian language. Some believe that Mesut Yelmaz, the former premier, is a Turkified ethnic Hamshen Armenian, at least that’s what we’ve heard from turks. But he has to keep a low profile to survive as a politician in Turkey.
Do not let the turk divide Kurds and Armenians with their dirty tricks.
They already are at work telling us Kurds that Armenians will come and throw us out. Most of us, don’t believe one word coming from the mouth of a turk, but some uneducated and naive Kurds will heed to this dirty propaganda and betray us all.
Armenians should start building friendship bridges with the Kurds, and soon.
Ferhat
Panos,
The Population of Wilsonian Armenia is 4.9 million. Pontos and Lazistan is about 1.6 million and the Armenian Highlands 3.3 milion. Many historical Armenian villages are deserted till today. Many of the depopulated kurdish villages are originally Armenian villages. The Armenian section of Van is empty. Todays Erzincan is located away from Armenian deserted Arzinga. Because of wonton destruction of Armenia in 1915 many of our ancestral towns are empty. If you factor in our allies, those of the Alevi confession, the Hemshins and the empty areas, Armenians would control the majority of the land and population base outside of a few large cities. As part of a reparations plan funds will be available to buy out Sunnis and relocate them in central Anatolia. As is the case of Ajaria in Georgia, with religious freedom of the liberated wesern portion of Greater Armenia a large portion of those remaining will convert to Chrisitanity and retake an Armenian identity. The Trabzon greek moslems will convert back to Greek orthodoxy. The evidence is clear, Ajaria was 70% moslem, today after 20 years it is 65% Christian without an influx of new people. So in the case of turkish occupied Wilsonian Armenia an Armenian majority and friendly minority groups will exist in a short time after liberation. As a cartographer I am working on defining and delimiting Wilsonian Armenia based on the historic and present geographical data in terms of pre 1915 villages and post 1915 developed villages and towns.
12 million Kurds don’t belong in the Partser Hayk area. If and when Western Armenia is ours again, then this will be as it was for thousands of years the land of Armenians; I am thinking now of Wilsonian Armenia. Kurds belong in the southern part of today’s turkey, not in Wilsonian Armenia or in Partser Hayk.
Hello Nairian:
Once again, we are falling into the turkish games and politics. They are working day and night to build a gap between our two peoples.
To make this clear to my Armenian friends, here is where most of my people live.
[ Most of us live south of the historical Armenian borders, south of the Wilsonian borders. However there are Kurdish tribes, the ones that move from one place to another, and they have no permanent homes. These tribes lease these Armenian lands from the turkish occupiers. The Wisonian Armenian lands overwhelmingly belong to turkish government and absentee turkish landlords. Besides, we have no problems at all moving out, if asked.]
Turks are already at work using these kind of messages to frighten us Kurds. They will use every imaginable article and post to scare us of the impending Armenian onslaought. So, I ask my Armenian friends, do not feed the turkish fires with Armenian gasoline.
Our turkish occupied lands lie close to Iraqi and Syrian borders, where most of turkey’s 20 million(and not 12 million, which is a turkish manufactured lie) live.
DO NOT TRUST ONE WORD COMING FROM THE MOUTH OF A turk.
THEY WILL NOT HESITATE TO COMMIT ANOTHER GENOCIDE IF GIVEN THE CHANCE.
NOT ONE INCH OF YOUR LANDS SHOULD GO TO THE turks.
Ferhat
To Nairian:
Partser Hayk is a province of Greater Armenia. It’s population is not 12 million but 800,000. 80% turkish 20% kurdish. You must mean Medz Hayk. Outside Wilsonian Armenia in the proposed kurdish autonomous region, a portion of which is the rest of Greater Armenia, the bulk of our allies the Alevis and hidden Armenian live there and would prefer to be part of an Armenian state. That area is identical to our historical Greater Tsopk`.
To BK:
Turkish occupied Greater Armenia (not Wilsonian Armenia) has a population of 5.5 million. Two million are our allies, hidden Armenians and Alevi’s. The 3.5 million can relocate to central Anatolia which would be less of a burden than the 500,000 turks who came from Greece after the population exchange between Greece and turkey in 1923. It would be infinitely easier than what Greece had to endure with a 25% increase in the 1923 exchange. In my proposed relocation it would only be a 5% increase. Besides the legal relocation of 1923, 12 million germans were relocated from lands given to Poland after WWII. So there is precedent. Genocide can never go unpunished. The turks know this, that is why they work so hard to finish what they started against the Armenian people. So the numbers are not as “sheer” as you wish them to be. The worst enemies of the Armenian people are not turks but Armenians who put obstacles in the way of Hye Tahd. It’s like they are working for the barbarians with their lies, half truths and defeatist sophistry. We can win this! We can do it! Yes we can! Ignore the defeatists and ignore the parties and lets work together defending our Ethos and Ethnos. It’s is possible. Back in the 80’s the same people who said Armenia could never be an independent state and that the soviet union would never allow the tricolor to fly again are the same people who say if Western Armenia is ours who would move back? It would be full of moslems, Armenia would become kurdistan etc etcetera. My answer is dont worry about that, lets work on dividing and destroying the genocidal turkish government. The rest we can sort out later.
I agree with Panos. By the sheer numbers Western Armenia would become Kurdistan. Please don’t even think about it. Let people live their lives after so many years.
I am a soul from genocide
“ The Powerfulls insist to rule,
but never this time,
We are all citizens of this Earth
We have Humanitarian role
In any land, we smelled their grass
Or sandy dusts!
We can all unite to rule
We pretend to be happy
But still we look to our Star
Which will never fall
Unless we wanted it to fall!
I heartily congratulate who draw this diagram; I thought first the photo is Henry Astarjian’s Uncle, Dr. Astarjian. I remember he had a palace in Mosul (Naynawa) in Iraq.
But looking carefully it is the president W. Wilson standing and pointing.
My grand parents have a land in Diyarbakir and we still have the Tapos (official documents of the lands).Belonged to lawyer Garabed Dabbaghian who was slayed.
I miss the sharpness you had in the fist part. An armenian cant be islamic.. Panos how did the jews get rid of all those arabs from their lands (israel)?
An Armenian can have any religion he / she fancies. I have good friends, good Armenians, very active Armenians who are atheists, buddhists, baha’is, you name it, we have it. Don’t fall into that trap. If you have a problem with the numbers, have more children!
That’s the only answer to the numbers game. The Jews got only temporary relief by expelling the arabs. The only reason they tolerate the ultra-orthodox Jews in Israel, despite the fact that they don’t even bother recognizing the state of Israel, is the fact that they are the ones that, among the Jews, have the highest birthrate.
“Please save us! wow what a bunch of cheap propaganda, lets stop hating please.
actually guys its very simple.
when Armenians get western Armenia back, will fight for the wrights of the Kurds as well, and give them refuge statues and stand for their wright to a homeland in south Turkey joined by their brothers in north of Iraq. Everybody deserves a country to call homeland.
We never tried to convert anyone and for our brothers who converted by force or else will be welcomed and given equal wrights, if they wish. We are no Turks we believe in diversity and the power than it has.
Armenians and Kurds need to be working together against a comen enemy for a comen cause.
Dr. Portoian, any land that you owned in Diyarbekir, will be returned to their rightful owners(you). I am sorry and ashamed that Kurdish families occupy your houses. The lands, quite possibly belong to absentee turkish landowners. Unlike Turks, we really feel sorry for occupying and living in houses that belonged to Armenians. These are issues that can and will be rectified once we throw the Genocidal turk out of our houses forever.
I assure all Armenians, that not one single Armenian will be molested by Kurds. The days of turkish treachery and lies are over and we are aware of their dirty tricks. We will never be a tool in the hands of turks, never ever.
Jaques, your words really touched me, I am greatful for your very kind and generous words. We did great harm to the Armenians, we know about it, because we were used quite skillfully by the turks. We lived side by side with the Armenians for thousands of years, and never in our histories, did we or you attempt to annihilate the other. Armenians were to us, and us Kurds were to you, worthy oponents….until the appearance of this viceous and violently murderous turks, then all hell broke loose.
In any case, if my people inhabits a house, or owns land that belonged to the Armenians, we will gladly move out if and when asked..
Let us all leave our petty squabbles at the door, and concentrate on how to ask these turks, to leave our lands and accept the dirty deeds(Genocides) their garandfathers committed.
Ferhat
My question is to all Armenians. All these years all over the world you are striving to take eastern part of Turkey, half of Azerbaijan, Javakhetia from Georgia or go even further create Great Armenia from Sea to Sea (Black sea to Caspian sea). Even if hypothetically speaking you would be able to accomplish this Great Armenia how do you expect to reside big part of South Caucasus and Eastern Anatolia with two million Armenians living in modern Armenia. Ohh maybe Armenian Diaspora living in the States will move to the mountains of Eastern Anatolia and live with their Kurdish peshmerge brothers. The lands that Armenians are claiming are currently habited by at least 20-25 million non-armenian population. What are you going to do with those people? Kill them or expel them to somewhere else. (Turks and Tatars back to Mongolia and Eastern China, Kurds to Iran and all the Georgians to Tbilisi). My suggestions to you live those people alone. None of the nations living in the region will evaporate to somewhere else; armenains as well as other people of the region have to find the ways peacefully coexist together. The people of the region have only one way for survival: pease, respect and mutual cooperation between each other or else as we have always seen they will be easy target for big powers and live in poverty and misery forever.
I hope you stop being prejudice and post my comments
Emin Hasanov,
I will dispell the myths you have created. Turkish occupied Greater Armenia has a population of only 4.9 million not 20-25 million. 7% of ROT’s population 6% of ROT’s GDP and 12% of ROT’s area.
It’s debatable as to the present population numbers of ROA. The carrying capacity of ROA is 800,000 according to my calculations. Armenians in ROA and Russia, Europe and the Western Hemisphere would be sufficient to repopulate Greater Armenia presently occupied by Turkey. Easily 2.5 million will return. One half from Armenia and the other half from the diaspora. We had no problems with Alevis east of the euphrates and previous turkish governments were always fearful of Alevi-Armenian cooperation. Hidden Armenians , Yezidis, Assyrians and Alevis can and will have a place in Greater Armenia. The turkish government would be bound to remove Sunni turks and turkified kurds to central Anatolia. After all 12 million Germans went peacefully out of eastern Germany so that Poles could take their place. Its been done before. LEGALLY. There will be peace, respect and mutual cooperation when the turks no longer control lands that they dont deserve- ethnically, historically and by acts of genocide. No one and no country would “evaporate” as you say. Anyway those issues are not your problem. Thanks for the concern though. This is all very possible and the turkish government knows it. Thats what all this struggle with genocide recognition is all about. Your dark clouds hold no lightning, nor thunder, not even rain.
Armenians need support from at least 1 super power to get anything done, that’s all I have to say about this. We can do it but not alone. USSR promised us to take those lands back and then come Stalin, who hates Armenians and all our promises are wiped clean.
If you knew your history you would not be saying this. Stalin at the end of WWII until his death was pushing for the province of Kars to be transferred to Armenia. Part of the plan was bringing diaspora Armenians back to Armenia for the purpose of repopulating KArs with Armenians. At one point, the turks actually were making the preparations to go about making the transfer but it was the United States that came to turkeys rescue by including turkey in NATO. If anything it is turkey that needed a superpower to protect it. Stalin hated everybody. Read proper history books to divest yourself of defeatist mythology.
I find Armenian psychology fascinating. Most Armenians are still small thinkers. It is an unfortunate relic of being 900 years under the turkish boot and 300 years under the Russian. We can do great things if we think for ourselves and act for ourselves. I could write a book about why Armenians dont think big, do big and think they need a big brother to get things done. It’s all very easy to say no, it cant be done and go back to eating dolma. There are dozens of Armenians in Los Angeles right now who are actively spying for the turks. I could write a separate book about why Armenians do that also. Alot has been written about hidden Armenians, what about hidden turks amongst us. LOL.
Dino,
I am thinking along the same lines. Yes we can and we shall act for ourselves and not wait for any “big guy” to rescue us. That wont happen. I am already involved in infant stages of making the reparations a reality by supporting ANCA and denouncing the current oligarchic treasonous government in Armenia. I will be the first one to move to Western Armenia with my clan! Think about it.
ArmenAryatsi,
Not only have I been thinking about i,t but I have also been planning it! I have already designed a rural development plan for my ancestral village and its agricultural lands. Before the Armenocide of 1915 my village had a population of 600 Armenians now it is about 70 turks. I studied agriculture at my local university with the sole purpose of being a farmer on my ancestral patrimony. That is how confident I am that we can defeat the barbarians and take back what is rightfully ours. I have started a web site devoted to people like yourself: It’s not live yet but I will provide information about its launch to all those interested. You may contact me at:
dino@armenia-irredenta.org
Hitler’s Propaganda Minister, Joseph Goebbels, is famously noted to have said something to the effect of, “Repeat a lie enough times and it becomes the truth…
This is what it is with your propaganda on what happened in the WWWI
This guy is not a Kurd. A phony turk trying desperately to divide Armenians from Kurds.
FAILED AGAIN…sorry.
Ferhat
If you have read this article, and it doesn’t appear to be totally absurd, please go back and read it again.
The writer, and many of the commentators are contemplating actual warfare over an Internet website.
To back up his claim for war, the writer uses the cooked-up armenian genocide claim to back it up. No serious, unbiased academician agrees to this claim. He flirts with ideas of pure-race – Turks being half Armenian. This is the equivalent of saying Americans are half-European to back up a claim for EU to annex US.
Not only does he use these fantastic, pseudo-scientific ideas to support warfare, but he talks about an impossible war: He basically contemplates warfare against Turkey, who have been fighting in a similar region with PKK terror for 30 years – surely PKK would have gained an inch of land by now if it had been at all possible?
This sort of fanatical, radical, absurd ideology that pushed the Armenians into the military catastrophe that they faced back in 1919. Follow the path of fools, and history will indeed repeat itself.
Mr Henry Astrajian. are you the same as Henry Astarjian MD New Hampshire
A Kurdish Teenage Girl Jailed for 8 Years
By Turkish Criminal Court for throwing Stone On Turkish Police
Let President Obama imagine
If that Kurdish girl was his
Daughter Sasha or Malia
or his daughter’s friend.
Let American black race
Stop speaking about slaves
They haven’t met yet Ottoman’s genes
Who know how to lie, deny and slay!
Pretending they know justice how to be
Used only on innocents,
Murdering race after race
Whom they think has no Turkish blood like thems.
And force on them, their heartless Turkishness.
Isn’t Berivan a Sunni Muslim, Like thems???
Isn’t she young innocent probably like judge’s
Or juries daughter who sentenced Berivan to imprisonment?
From Berivan’s Eyes you can tell
How kind and innocent she is
No need to mere photos
Any kind person can praise.
I know ‘Kurdish Girls’ very well
They were my friends in Kirkuk, (North Iraq)
Where my parents settled after genocide,
They were our Neighbors and Friends.
I remember one of them her name was Berween (Berivan?):
Others Narmeen, Nasreen. Shereen, Sharmeen
We were very close childhood friends
Playing helping each other always
Never been jealous, never knew nuisance.
They were closer to me than my relatives and Armenian friends.
Let this ‘Soulful Poem’ reach the President
Let it written in the history
Let every one study Ottomans dark blood
Still breeding the same genes as their ancestries.
If their judges are not human
What else can you expect!
What about juries were they bribed as well.
They are best teachers for bribes
As Arabs rehearse about them… always.
All Judges need to be punished
Through international courts.
Other wise this unhumanitarian attitudes
Will continue like others, from our genocide days.
And none will prevent them as they think
They can always slay and pursue their mistakes.
Sylva-MD-Poetry
January 29 2010
This Map is too small for Hayastan land and it should be from Istanbul to Hakkari, to Kars , to Diyarbakir, to Mersin, to Gazinatep, Izmir. Adana to Trabzon… Turks have nothing…This is real and an imagined… There is not even one Turk live in todays Turkish land. They are all Armenians… There are no Kurds but Kurdified Armenians.
You are confusing turkish delusional historiography with historical reality. Turks claim everything is turkish and that Armenia never existed. The turkish government claims everyone is a turk in turkey! Even Armenians! But the reality is the people of turkey are varied and do not want to be turks. There are multi millions of people in Anatolia, if given the freedom to be anything but turks or sunni moslems. Given freedom and 50 years time, 50% of the population of anatolia will be Christian and speaking either Greek or Armenian.