Turkey must lift veil on ‘first Holocaust’

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* Katerina Cosgrove
* From: The Australian
* September 10, 2010 12:00AM

TRAVEL to Istanbul or any of the Aegean coast towns of Turkey and you may think this secular, hospitable place with its pebbled beaches and Hellenistic ruins has no secrets. Travel east and you come to traditional Turkey, a land of headscarves and workaday mosques, a far cry from the architectural wonders of the Suleiman Mosque and Aghia Sophia.

Here you will see desecrated frescoes in 10th-century churches, towns and villages whose names have been changed.

Beneath Turkey’s veneer as an easy tourist destination lies a history that is darker, a reality more complex.

Scratch the surface and the mass graves, the bloodstained banknotes and the dearth of ethnic minorities beg questions the Turks still refuse to answer.

Here took place a forgotten genocide. Robert Fisk calls it “the first Holocaust” and claims “the parallel with Auschwitz is no idle one”. Turkey’s reign of terror against the Armenians was an attempt to destroy the entire race. The death toll was about two million between 1915 and 1917.

Those who didn’t die during the deportations were taken to concentration camps and worked to death or killed. Others were herded into underground caves in their thousands and set on fire – the world’s first gas chamber, which became a model for the Nazis.

Most of the survivors are now dead, their descendants scattered, even as far as Australia. Yet there are two million Turks today with an Armenian grandparent.

Fethiye Cetin grew up proudly Turkish; reciting nationalist poems at school festivals, comfortably ensconced in her culture.

All this was shattered the day she learned that Seher, her Muslim grandmother, was really Heranush, a Christian Armenian. During a death march, Heranush was wrenched from her mother’s arms by a gendarme on horseback and brought up Turkish Muslim. She kept her past secret until she was close to death. Then she finally confided in her granddaughter.

Cetin is a human rights lawyer, writer and activist for the recognition of the genocide. In her intimate, tender memoir she tells the story of a woman who was no nameless victim, nor bearer of grudges. What occurred in Heranush’s world at the dawn of the20th century was typical of the pattern throughout eastern Turkey, the former Armenia.

When the Young Turks triumvirate took over the government from the corrupt Ottomans they promised Christian minorities equality and the right to bear arms. So when Turkish gendarmes came to Heranush’s village in 1915 with guns and bayonets, they brought also a sense of betrayal. Men and boys were rounded up, taken away to be shot, their throats cut and bodies thrown into rivers or ravines. The death marches began; the endless lines of elderly and infirm forced from their villages into the Syrian desert, to the killing centres of Shaddadie and Der ez Zor.

Of course there were humane Turks who hid Armenians in their homes, adopted children, saved them.Yet the stubborn fact remains that the majority of Turks still refute the genocide today. Officially there is a culture of denial in Turkey, leading to self-censorship, trials in criminal courts, prison, even murder. In January 2007, Armenian journalist and academic Hrant Dink was gunned down outside the offices of his Turkish-Armenian newspaper Agos by an ultra-nationalist, a 17-year-old boy. Before his death, he had been convicted under infamous article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, the crime of “anti-Turkishness”.

Cetin represented him during his trial, and continues to work for his family. He wrote articles urging his own people to forget the “poisonous blood” between them and the Turks and reconcile their differences. The Turkish popular press twisted his meaning, attributing to him the words, “Turkish blood is dirty”.

It has since been proven that security forces knew of plans for the murder, that his phone was tapped and his emails and correspondence intercepted. How far the government, police and judiciary are involved in reprisalsis cause for debate.

Yet after Dink’s death, the boy who killed him was photographed posing with the two gendarmes, smiling under a Turkish flag.

This is the same law under which Nobel Prize-winning author Orhan Pamuk was tried, after merely talking about the genocide in a Swiss magazine. He faced up to three years in prison.

“What happened to the Ottoman Armenians in 1915 was a major thing that was hidden from the Turkish nation; it was a taboo,” he said. “But we have to be able to talk about the past.”

In 2006, Turkish-American Elif Shafak wrote a novel, The Bastard of Istanbul, containing one Armenian character, descendant of those killed in the genocide. She was put on trial for the same crime of “denigrating Turkishness”, but the charges were dropped. How could they not see the absurdity of pressing charges against a fictional character?

Armenia is now an eighth of its original size. Many of its western provinces were ceded to Turkey after World War I, from Lake Van to Erzerum to the Black Sea coast. Yerevan, the capital of the Republic of Armenia, is where the country’s spiritual symbol, Mount Ararat, can be seen from every window, yet it is across the border on Turkish soil.

Cetin’s memoir highlights our need to officially recognise this atrocity as genocide, to record the details of these lost and grant them their place in history. It reminds us of our duty to finally put names and stories to all those in unmarked graves, mothers and fathers and children whose bones will never be found.

Katerina Cosgrove is the author of The Glass Heart and a forthcoming novel based on the Armenian genocide. She will be in conversation with Fethiye Cetin at Sydney’s Gleebooks today at 6.30pm. Cetin’s memoir, My Grandmother, is published by Spinifex Press

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  • Armenian genocide the final frontier The Australian, 23 Apr 2010
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2 responses to “Turkey must lift veil on ‘first Holocaust’”

  1. DECIPHERING THE AUTHOR, Katerina Cosgrove

    Murduch’un The Australian’in yazari Katerina Cosgrove ve baglantilari…
    ———————————————————————————————–

    Yayin duzlemi Siyonizmin (The Australian / Heraldsun Victoria / Sydney Morning Herald yani MURDOCH gazeteleri)

    Ermeni ve Yunan/Rum lobilerinin ortak operasyonu…

    Ingiltere’deki Yunanca konusurgillerden Milletvekili Dismore orneginde oldugu gibi aynen Siyonizm/Hellenizm/Buyuk Ermenistan ittifaki!

    Acalim…

    Makalenin yazari Katerina Cosgrove’un facebook profili!
    http://www.facebook.com/katerina.cosgrove?v=wall#

    Katerina Cosgrove’un The Australian’da bugun cikan makale ile ilgili ve de ilintili facebook profil duvarindaki son durum su:

    Niko adli bir “romantik” Yunanistanli ile evli veya birlikte her neyse. (Nick Georges oldugu anlasiliyor http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=647531985) Aman ne tesaduf… Fotograflarinda tavana kadar kitaplarla dolu raflarin onunde poz veren bir aparatif eleman…

    Armen Gakavian adli “Political Science” mezunu ve Ermeni/Yunan Think Tanklarina yakin ve de “community capacity building” isleri ile ugrasan asagidaki doktora tezinin yazari olan bir Ermeni hanimefendiye dezinformasyon besliyor… (Asagida bizzat Katerina hanimin profilinde goreceksiniz bir ornegini… “Iran’in Cumhurbaskani Yardimcisi bile jenosid var” demis felan ya…) Komedi bunlarin halleri… Acinacak haldeler…
    http://www.realchange.nareg.com.au/

    Gakavian, Armen (October 1997). “ARMENIAN DIASPORAN IDENTITY REIMAGINED, 1915-1985”. PhD Thesis, Department of Government and Public Administration, University of Sydney. Retrieved 2008-09-02. “…the former Prime Minister of Armenia, Hovhannes Kachaznouni, published a book, The ARF Has Nothing More to Do, and migrated to Soviet Armenia. As the title suggests, Kachaznouni argued that the ARF and the other parties had no role to play in Armenian political life, now that Armenia was Bolshevik. The opponents of the ARF, of course, capitalised on this. In the same year, a response was written to Kachaznouni by high-ranking party member Rouben Darbinian, who argued that Kachaznouni was wrong to give up hope, because Sovietisation would be short lived, and the ARF needed to continue the struggle for freedom.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hovhannes_Katchaznouni

    Yunan Lobisine yakin Sydney Universitesinden bir kac academic var arkadaslari arasinda…

    Katerina Cosgrove Niko came home with two enormous bunches of poppies — reminds me of Greece31 August at 10:36

    3 people like this.

    o
    Sonia Tzotcheva Soooooooo wonderful!!

    31 August at 10:37

    o
    Katerina Cosgrove Yes — all different colours, creams and pale yellows and blush-pinks, some with red and gold streaks, so beautiful. In Greece — as you know — they are bright scarlet. I’m sure you took lots of pic of them… :-)))

    31 August at 10:39

    o
    Sonia Tzotcheva Yes, I took a few pics. I will send one to you now.

    31 August at 10:41

    o
    Katerina Cosgrove I would love to see it. x

    31 August at 10:42

    o ‘
    Julia Sandersley Souter now there’s a well trained man:o) xx

    31 August at 10:57

    o
    Katerina Cosgrove He sure is! Every week some flowers — but maybe more for D than me…

    31 August at 11:51

    o
    Libby-Jane Charleston what a lovely man!

    02 September at 00:39

    Katerina Cosgrove Just a reminder: If you want to come to Turkish writer Fethiye Cetin ‘in conversation’ at gleebooks on 10 Sept let me know — I have 5 free tickets left31 August at 10:42
    ·

    o

    Vigen Galstyan Hey Kat… me!

    31 August at 11:13

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove I’ll put your name at the door V xx

    31 August at 11:53

    o

    Sandy Willing Egan Yes please 2 tickets xxx

    31 August at 12:36

    o

    Vigen Galstyan Thank you dear!

    31 August at 12:52

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove Will do, Sandy xx

    31 August at 22:50

    o
    Richard DeVos One left for me? Or am happy to buy thru Gleebooks. Rx

    01 September at 01:55

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove Yep — of course one left for you. xx

    01 September at 02:08

    o

    Libby-Jane Charleston I really wanted to come..will be in Perth for my Grams funeral.. x

    02 September at 00:03

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove That’s OK LJ — I didn’t know your grandmother passed away recently — when?

    02 September at 00:05

    o

    Libby-Jane Charleston last week, you must have missed my facebook posts about it, so sad but she was terribly sick. an amazing woman.one of five daughters. her father died when she was 14 and she left school to work and help support the family. she was my biggest supporter x

    02 September at 00:39

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove Oh, I’m so sorry, how old was she when she died?

    02 September at 02:10

    Katerina Cosgrove via Armen Gakavian:

    Turkey fumes over Iran VP’s ‘genocide’ remark

    http://www.ynetnews.com

    News: FM Davutoglu demands explanation after Iranian Vice President Hamid Baghaei says mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Empire constituted ‘genocide.’ Mottaki: Iran ‘s position was in line with Turkey ‘s stance on the issue

    29 August at 09:39 · Share · Report

    Katerina Cosgrove Look out for my article on the Armenian genocide and Fethiye Cetin’s memoir in this Friday’s Australian, in the ‘World’ pages. Also on the same day is the launch and ‘in conversation’ at Gleebooks 6.30 pmWednesday at 02:53
    ·

    · 3 people like this.

    o

    Deborah A Lupton Fantastic!

    Wednesday at 04:51

    o

    Karen Dogan i certainly will!

    Wednesday at 05:34

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove Thanks guys…Karen, it’s not very Turkish-friendly, but you know I love Turkey and its people…hope your husband won’t be offended.

    Wednesday at 06:12

    o

    Mandy Swann I am coming to see your talk this Friday with Larissa and will keep an eye out for the article.

    Yesterday at 01:30

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove Can’t wait to see you both. X

    Yesterday at 01:55

    o

    Jorge Sotirios But Turks and Greeks are friends now, aren’t we? Just don’t mention Aremnian genocide, 1922, Ottomans…

    Yesterday at 08:49 · 1 person

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove The Pontians, Cyprus etc etc — when will we ever resolve it all?

    Yesterday at 10:26

    o

    Libby-Jane Charleston I’m buying it this morning, so proud of you

    9 hours ago

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove I sent you the online version as well.

    9 hours ago

    o

    Libby-Jane Charleston Yes I know but I’d rather see it in the paper, more special!

    9 hours ago

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove True! xx

    9 hours ago

    o

    Michael Lever Great article Kat any reaction yet?

    8 hours ago

    o

    Katerina Cosgrove Not yet LOL

    8 hours ago

    Turk milletinin serefi ile yalan duzmece haber uretip oynamaya kalkan kotu niyetli bir kadin iste bu!. REAKSIYON bekliyor jurnaliscik, hem de gulerek sanki milletleri birbirine dusurmek marifetmis gibi!!!

    Yunanli sair Konstantinos Kavafis’i seviyor… Ve yunanli filozof Nikos Kazantzakis’I seviyor… Yunanlilara coook hayran!!

    Arap dunyasinin olumsuz sarkicisi Oum Kalthoum’u de seviyor (Bir suru Suryani arkadasi da var Suriye ve Lubnan kokenli)

    Ama Turk Tasavvuf musikisini genis kitlelere ulastiran ornegin benim de sevdigim Ömer Faruk Tekbilek’i de seviyor… (Bir arkadasi Karen Dogan…Ondan ozur diliyor Turk olan kocasi alinir diye)

    Old Yerevan : Gone But Not Forgotten
    http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yerevan/Old-Yerevan-Gone-But-Not-Forgotten/358361197046

    ve

    Gaif Tours – Discover Armenia with Us
    http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gaif-Tours-Discover-Armenia-with-Us/154334399110

    Ermenistan’a bedava seyahat etmis oldugu anlasiliyor. Dismore’da Kibris’a bedava gidiyordu… 🙂

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    Haluk Demirbag
    Turkish Forum Ingiltere

  2. Dear Miss Cosgrove,

    How much did it take from the Armenian and Hellanic diasporas to buy you off? Or did you simply sleep with a bunch of influential ones who then showered you with jewelry, etc. In other words, how much did you sell you soul for?

    Did you ever stop to think that there is more than one side to a story? How many mass graves of massacred Turks, Kurds, etc. have you visited? How many families of the victims of the Armenian murderes did you even bother to speak with? Did you know that in Switzerland and France, it’s a crime to deny the alledged Armenian “genocide” and that you can be fined for doing so? Could you be even more hypocritical and biased madame?

    Madame, your letter reeks of hate and prejudice against a people and nation you have just proven that you know nothing about! It is insultive to me and the millions of others who lost family members to murderous Armenian traitors who sided with the Czar and the Russians, British, French, Italians. My paternal grandfather and a grand uncle were one of the few survivors of the massacres at Van (where the Armenians even murdered the Mayor of Van, who was an Armenian himself), Kars, Ersurum and Erzincan! They witnessed helplessly the slaughter of their own family members, relatives, friends and neighbors! In Van alone, where my grandfather witnessed, wrote down and documented eveything, over 20,000 Turks were slaughtered by Armenians within a two day period! What have you to say to this? I don’t recall you contacting any of my family members, or others who lost loved ones. If there ever was a true GENOCIDE, then look to your Armenian financiers, lovers, and bribers to see the true culprits!! You madame, simply disgust me and are neither professional, but also not credible! May you rot in Hell!!

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