279) The claim that the Armenians were subjected to genocide in 1915, in the last days of the Ottoman ..

The claim that the Armenians were subjected to genocide in 1915, in the last days of the Ottoman Empire, came to the agenda once again on April 24, which is marked in the West as "the anniversary of Armenian genocide."

Ayla Ganioglu
Turkish Daily News, 27 April 2003

The Armenian diaspora's efforts to enable those western parliaments to pass decisions condemning the genocide have never ended. The U.S. comes first among these countries. Retired Ambassador, Republican People's Party (CHP) Istanbul deputy and parliamentary foreign affairs committee member Sukru Elekdag told the TDN that the Russian, Canadian, Greek, Belgian, Italian Parliaments, European Council Parliamentarians' Assembly and the EU European Parliament passed resolutions recognizing Armenian genocide claims one after another in recent years. The legislative bodies of Argentina and Lebanon also took similar decisions. Armenian terrorist organization ASALA ceased its terrorist actions in 1984 after it massacred 42 Turks including 36 diplomats and their families. It killed five ambassadors, four consul generals and one military attache. Elekdag thinks that the terror incidents were the first phase of Armenian radicals' three-staged plan. He stresses that the Armenian problem was brought to the agenda with the terror incidents, while a strategy aiming to enable the world to recognize the Armenian genocide is being followed at the second stage. Elekdag says the Armenians will demand high compensation from Turkey in the third stage, which would in turn constitute the legal basis for Armenia's demands for land. Elekdag responded to TDN's questions as follows:

TDN: What do you think about the claims that the Armenians were subjected to genocide in the last period of the Ottoman Empire when you look at the issue objectively?

Elekdag: This incident, which has tried to be recognized as "genocide," is not related with this concept since the Ottoman government never had a decision, plan or will to carry out systematic genocide against the Armenian nation or annihilate them. It's not because of their ethnic roots or religious beliefs that certain parts of the Armenian nation was forced to migrate. The reasons behind the fact that the Armenians were subjected to "relocation" can be listed as follows: 1-They cooperated with the Russians who invaded Ottoman lands during the war, 2-They helped the enemy by forming voluntary troops, 3-They rebelled from time to time, 4-They arranged armed attacks against villages of the Muslim population, 5-They claimed the lives of soldiers defending the country on the war front. All these were experienced in a period when the Ottoman state was in a war of life or death. Relocation was a legitimate and legally right precaution in the framework of the right to protect the presence of the state in that period as the Armenians betrayed the state by cooperating with the enemy and arranged large-scale armed attacks which endangered the country's defense.

TDN: It's claimed that the Armenian incurred losses of lives during relocation...

Elekdag: It's true that the Armenians incurred losses during clashes and "relocation" in eastern Anatolia. However, we should not forget that the Armenian gangs, which revolted with the start of war in eastern Anatolia, massacred the Turkish and Muslim population as well. The feelings of hatred and revenge, which rose to a peak between the communities, and the government's failure to provide security in the war environment, were influential in the relocation. This situation led to serious flaws in the transport of convoys during relocation, which in turn hurt the Armenians. Lack of vehicles, fuel, food and medicine, bad weather conditions and epidemics such as typhus created severe harm to the Turks as well as the Armenians. In the light of these facts, it's unveiled that the claims that the Armenians were subjected to genocide are inaccurate.

TDN: What's the situation in legal terms?

Elekdag: The genocide concept is defined in the "Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide", which went into effect in 1951: "Genocide is the act committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group." However, it's obvious that the Ottoman government never had such a plan to destroy the Armenians in whole or in part. Despite all their efforts in the past 88 years, the Armenians could never put forth a valid document proving such a will or plan. As a matter of fact, famous scientist and historian Bernard Lewis said in his article published in Le Monde in 1993: There's no valid proof that the Ottoman government had a plan aiming mass destruction against the Armenian nation. The Turks had legitimate reasons to resort to relocation since the Armenians were fighting against the Turks in alliance with Russia which invaded Ottoman lands. These facts refute the claims that the Armenians were subjected to genocide. The allied forces, which invaded the Ottoman Empire after the war, wanted to try the ruling Unity and Progress Party administrators because of the massacre against the Armenians but failed to find any documents to bring an accusation against the Malta exiles.

TDN: How did this event take place?

Elekdag: The British invasion administration in Istanbul arrested 144 Turks including ministers, politicians, governors and high-ranking officials and bureaucrats on allegations of massacre and various crimes depending on the reports of Armenian Patriarchate and exiled them to Malta. However, it's understood thereafter that these reports were just a propaganda tool and that they could not be used as evidence in the court. Upon this development, the British invasion administration in Istanbul inspected all state archives of the Ottoman Empire and carried out intense interrogations. Despite this, they could not find a single piece of evidence proving the massacre claims. The British applied to the American government in despair. America did not fight against the Ottoman Empire during World War I, thus sustaining its relations. The American diplomats and consulate officials in Turkey carefully followed the Armenian relocation and provided humanitarian aid to these relocated Armenians. There must have been records in the American archives if there had been a planned mass massacre against the Armenians. However, no document accusing the Turks of committing a massacre against the Armenians could be found in these archives. In this case, those exiled to Malta were acquitted and released, which in turn proved that the Armenian genocide claims were groundless.

TDN: How were claims of genocide kept on the agenda despite all these facts?

Elekdag: A short while ago, U.S. historian professor Justin McCarthy, found a document in the British archives. The document proves that the claims of Armenian genocide were made up of lies based on documents prepared during World War I, by the "War Propaganda Secret Bureau" under the British Intelligence Agency. This Propaganda Bureau had worked at Wellington House until the end of the war. When the war ended the British government had all documents burned and destroyed. However, the document found by McCarthy survived and was left in an archive box where nobody got hold of it. The Secret Propaganda Bureau was administered by Lord Bryce. The one who prepared the baseless documents for publishing was historian Arnold Toynbee who later became world famous.



----- False documents by the British and the Blue Book-----



TDN: What could be the reasons behind Britain preparing false documents?

Elekdag: The reason for Britain having these artificial documents prepared was to exploit the compassionate feelings of the American public towards Armenians and thus enable the U.S. to enter the war as quickly as possible. Another aim was to create grounds for an Armenian state to be established under the rule of Britain and France in Eastern Anotolia, following the expected fall of the Ottoman Empire. By taking the Armenians on their side, Britain and France were calculating to hinder Russia's strategy of reaching the Mediterranean by invading Ottoman lands. The artificial documents that I referred to earlier were compiled in a thick book titled "Treatment of Armenians during the Ottoman Empire, 1915-1916" published by the British Government in 1916 with the approval of the House of Commons and distributed worldwide. This publication, also known as "The Blue Book," introduces Turks to the world as people who are inhuman, open to all evil, bloodthirsty and whose feelings of dignity, conscience and mercy have been blunted.

TDN: What are the claims in "The Blue Book?"

Elekdag: The Blue Book puts forward that "relocation" is an ethnic destruction plan designed by the Ottoman government. It includes false reports and documents mentioning brutality, mass massacre and cruelty applied to Armenians under this plan. It is certain that The Blue Book had a strong effect on the war. Just so, with reference to the statements by the then British ministers, it is a fixed fact that The Blue Book was an initial factor in President Wilson's decision for America to enter the war. This abhorred book published in 1916 forms the bases of the Armenian genocide claims. No other publication in the history of the Turkish Republic has produced this much harm. Assuming The Blue Book reflecting the facts, tens of thousands of books and articles written on the Armenian genocide since 1916 enabled the slander and blackening campaign to continue against Turks. Despite its falsity being revealed, the Armenian propaganda institutions republished The Blue Book in England at the end of 2000 and introduced it to the media at a meeting where members of the House of Lords were also present. Remzi Gur, a businessman who felt uneasy of the situation, organized a dinner conference for 250 people hosted by Lord Ahmed in the premises of the British House of Lords building with the approval of our London Consulate. I myself and professor Nevzat Yalcintas (now a member of the Justice and Development Party), a dear friend of mine, attended this meeting where many members of the House of Lords and House of Commons together with representatives of the media were present and addressed the visitors.

TDN: What was your speech about?

Elekdag: I stated that it was now openly revealed that The Blue Book consist of false documents and in spite of this the British media still continuously referred to this book to accuse Turkey of genocide. Furthermore, I reminded that during the 1920 British invasion of Istanbul the British deported Turks whom they accused of Armenian genocide to Malta and upon no evidence, the defendants were released. I asked them, "The Blue Book was published in 1916. Why wasn't it referred to, to convict the people exiled to Malta?"



----- 'The British have to apologize' -----



TDN: Why do you think they didn't refer to the Blue Book? Even though it was based on false documents wasn't it possible in those times for them to use it?

Elekdag: The Blue Book couldn't have been used because it consisted of false and fabricated documents. Because according to the opinion of the prosecutor of the British Kingdom, the claims and documents in the Blue Book were too baseless and untrue to be accepted as evidence in the British Court. Today, without giving any to discussions it has been proved that there had been a slander and humiliation campaign organized against Turks 85 years ago during the war and with this aim the Blue Book -- full of false documents -- had been published. Despite this, today the British media still refers to this book to accuse Turkey of genocide. The thesis, research and books written on the history of that period still takes quotes from the Blue Book.

Accusing Turkey of genocide, this book encouraged terror at one stage and caused the death of many innocent people. It still creates enemies among people and destroys peace and confidence. It is a crime of humanity and murder to poison opinions of nations and make enemies of them, causing hatred and revenge that will continue for generations. For this reason we expect the British Parliament and the government to declare the baselessness of the Blue Book and to apologize to Turkey. I proposed this in that meeting.

During World War I, the British intelligence service published a book on Germans boiling their enemies to make soap, depending on the statements of dozens of witnesses and secretly taken photos, and made the world believe that this was the truth. When after the war it was revealed that these were lies, the British parliament accepted the truth in a statement they made in 1936 and apologized to Germany.

The Turkish Parliament should put forward this case and follow up the issue regarding the baselessness of the Blue Book published with the approval of the British parliament and its declaration. Our government should make official demands to Britain regarding the issue. A statement by the British parliament or the government making a statement on the issue will be a development to refute claims of Armenian genocide.

Ankara --- TDN Parliament Bureau




Thanks to turkisharmenians.cjb.net

Holdwater: Say, that's pretty interesting that the British apologized to the Germans, regarding their false Blue Book directed against the Germans. Will the British similarly apologize to the Turks? I'm not holding my breath... although that would be the gentlemanly thing to do, given the terrible harm this deceitful book has produced... and is still continuing to produce.

What WAS that important document Professor Justin McCarthy found in the British archives? I would love to know.

Ex-Ambassador to America Sukru Elekdag has done a great job over the years refuting the Falsified Genocide, sometimes entirely on his lonesome. A study by him refuting Turkish Turncoat Halil Berktay may be found here, and Dr. Dennis Papazian chose to do battle with an Elekdag letter that has been rebutted here.