Armenian Genocide and Turkey

Armenian genocide is a historical event which is not accepted by Turkish official view. Many Turkish institutions, especially political and bureaucratic ones, do not have tendency to take responsibility for this historical event. Turkish official view created several arguments for Armenian genocide. Until the establishment of Turkish Republic, Armenian mass murders was not denied. According to Akcam(2005), even Ataturk, the founding father of the Turkish Republic, was accepted the mass murders of Armenians. Along with the establishment of the Turkish Republic, denial is appeared. Turkish official view accepted the deportation and mass murders as self-protection of Ottoman Empire “against Western and Russian ambitions and the encroachment of Christianity.” (Akcam, 2005) Although self-protection or defense thesis was accepted by Turkish officials, there was not salient discussion about what happened to Armenians in Anatolia. 1980’s was the awakening period for the event occurred in 1915. Assaults of Armenians towards Turkish diplomats and the lobbying activities of Armenians brought up the mass murders of Armenians to the agenda of several countries. Official discourse of the Turkish Republic about the mass murders of Armenians began to shape in that decade.

Official view of Turkish Republic about foreign policy issues can be found in the website of Turkish Republic’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The “foreign policy with questions” section in the website of the ministry, explains Turkish foreign policy by answering many questions. The questions mostly focuses on problematic issues of Turkey in foreign policy. Issues like Israel-Palestine problem, European Union and Armenian “genocide” are focused areas. Statistically, Armenian...

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...Republic. All these discourses straightforwardly demonstrates that Armenian Genocide is used by Turkish officials. Armenian genocide and the recognition of it described as part of secret agenda and starting point for new demands. Possibility of future “harmful” demands perception is created scenario which reproduce the paranoia derives from the legacy of the Treaty of Sevres. Briefly, Armenian genocide used by Turkish officials, who are both members of ruling and opposition parties, to reproduce Sevres syndrome.

Works Cited

the Treaty of Sevres, 1920

Yilmaz, Hakan. 2006. "Two Pillars of Nationalist Euroskepticism in Turkey: The Tanzimat and Sevres Syndrome". In Turkey, Sweden and the European Union: Experiences and Expectations, ed. Ingmar Karlsson and Annika Strom Melin, Stockholm: SIEPS(Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies), 2006, pp.29-40