Turkish MP calls on Erdogan to apologize for Armenian Genocide

Turkish MP calls on Erdogan to apologize for Armenian Genocide

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Istanbul deputy of Kurdish Democratic Society Party Sebahat Tuncel submitted a document to the parliament urging President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to apologize for the Armenian Genocide on behalf of Turkey.

The parliamentarian also called Erdogan to apologize for the mid-20th century Kurdish massacres in Dersim, Marash, Sivas and Corum.

The President is urged to offer apologies from a parliamentary tribune, to be followed by mourning events at one of the massacre sites. Further, according to the document, Turkey's state archives should be disclosed, April 24 announced as a remembrance day, with moral and material damages compensated to Armenians.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan offered what the government said were "unprecedented condolences" on April 23, 2014 to the grandchildren of the Armenian Genocide survivors.

"The incidents of the First World War are our shared pain. To evaluate this painful period of history through a perspective of just memory is a humane and scholarly responsibility.

Millions of people of all religions and ethnicities lost their lives in the First World War. Having experienced events which had inhumane consequences - such as relocation - during the First World War, should not prevent Turks and Armenians from establishing compassion and mutually humane attitudes among towards one another.

In today’s world, deriving enmity from history and creating new antagonisms are neither acceptable nor useful for building a common future.

With this understanding, we, as the Turkish Republic, have called for the establishment of a joint historical commission in order to study the events of 1915 in a scholarly manner. This call remains valid. Scholarly research to be carried out by Turkish, Armenian and international historians would play a significant role in shedding light on the events of 1915 and an accurate understanding of history," Erdogan's statement said.

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.

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