Armenian Issue – Presentation by Prof. Dr. Turkkaya Ataov,

The following is a summary of the presentation for those interested in the subject matter.

The Armenian IssueAtaov started his presentation by stating that it is impossible to describe all aspects of the Armenian issue during a single lecture, today or tomorrow or even later, since it is such a complex problem that needs elaboration, corrections and new interpretations..

He started getting involved with this issue in 1979 when he realized that some of the things that he was reading were not accurate. He started writing about some of them in magazines and newspapers.

Pyramid of Skulls

One of the first things that attracted my attention, he said, was a picture published in several books, newspapers and magazines in France, Bulgaria, Iran and even in Latin America (including the Time magazine in the US) which claimed to be the skulls of Armenians killed by the Turks, referring to the “1915 - Turkish Barbarism”. The picture reminded me of a painting that I had seen at a gallery in Moscow, also included in a guide book that I had kept. I was able to locate the book among my 25,000 or so books and realized that it was the same painting published by the Armenians and their symphatizers over and over again.

I documented this in a monograph and made a wide distribution. The picture, presented as a photograph of heap of skulls, supposedly a remainder of ‘’Turkish barbarity’’ connected with the events of 1915, was actually a painting done in 1871 by a Russian master articst (V: Vereshchagin) who died in 1904.

Still hanging in the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, the oil canvas İS NAMED ‘’The Apotheasis of War’’ and is easily idebtifiable as such by any cultured Russian.

False Statement Attributed to Ataturk

An Armenian Hearst-style tabloid claimed that a Swiss journalist/artist had an interview with Ataturk on Aug 1, 1926, suggesting that Ataturk had admitted that the Ottoman Turks had committed genocide. An investigation on the tone and the style of the interview, the lack of any mention of the interview in Turkish newspapers, and investigations in the Swiss libraries showed that no such interview had taken place and that mo such person had even existed.

Book by AndonianAnother falsification is related to a number of so-called ''documents'' that an Armenian writer, Aram Andonian, either referred to or printed in a book that he attributed to the Ottoman leaders, principally to Talat Pasa.
Turkish scholars analyzed them and concluded that the book was based on forgeries. They were forgeries in terms of the kind of paper and cipher used, the dates, numbers and the signatures put on them. What he referred to as ''telegrams'' had been fabricated, which he claimed later that he had lost the originals. Ataov mentioned that he had extensively written about this as well.

Official Letters of Bogos Nubar, the head of the Armenian delegation to the Paris Peace Conference

Ataov showed a copy of an official letter that Bogos Nubar wrote to the French Foreign Ministry which states that between 600,000 - 700,000 Armenians had been subjected to relocation. Of these 250,000 went to the Caucasus, 80,000 stayed in Syria, 40,000 reached Iran, 20,000 more in Mosul and Baghdad, and hence a total of 390,000 reached their destination unmolested. The average remaining figure was 260,000. Bogos Nubar, the head of the Armenian Delegation at Versailles, does not say that this number was slaughtered by the Turks. Had he been sure that they were killed by the Turks, he would have certainly stated so, especially considering the fact that the Armenians were then on the side of the victors, and ‘’victors’’ justice was ruling everywhere. Ataov emphasized that the 260,000 were not killed by the Turks; many died of disease, or other causes, and that no one can really tell how many died. Between 1914-22, the Armenians participated in about s dozen wars, in which they killed and got killed.

Malta Trials

Ataov briefly commented on the Malta trials which ended with the release of 144 high Ottoman officials without any charges, including the Ottoman Grand Vizier down to the Columbia university graduate Ahmet Emin Yalman, the reporter who even gave lessons to the detainees to pass the time during the detention.

Quotation Attribute to Hitler

The notorious Hitler quotation was first published by The New York Times and The Times of London, with a note that this was reported by “our special correspondent”. While talking to his generals in 1939, the German dictator is supposed to have said: “I have given orders to destroy Polish-speaking race. After all, who remembers today the extermination of the Armenians.” Ataov stated he did extensive research on this and that there was no historical basis for attributing such a statement to Hitler. Ataov also spoke about the efforts of some misguided Armenians who draw a parallel between the Jewish Holocaust and the so-called Armenian genocide, which he said is unfair to the Jews as well as the Turks. Ataov added that Hitler was no expert of Armenian-Turkish relations, that all what he wrote was nonsense and even if he had made such a statement it would carry no weight at all.

Van UprisingsOne of the principal reasons for the relocation was the Armenian uprisings in Van in 1915 where Turks were massacred. The Russians took over the city and handed the governance to the Armenians which resulted in deaths mostly on the Muslim/Turkish side.

Questions and Answers
Ataov suggested that he could take only a few questions since it was getting late. One of the questions was on the Hitler quotation, as to why it was still being exhibited at the US Holocaust Museum in Washington DC, not too far from the White House. Turkkaya’s answer was: “Whoever has the power, will do whatever he wants.”
Then, Turkkaya stated that an Encyclopedia on Genocide published in Israel included Mustafa Kemal as one of those responsible for genocide. Ataov stated that he wrote about this falsification extensively.question was asked on the efforts of Ozdem Sanberk and the committee on the ''Reconciliation'' that was formed a couple of years ago, which has since been disbanned. Ataov responded by stating that he did not know about the efforts or the findings of the committee. Ataov also made a comment, referring to the recent conference in Ankara on Armenian Research, to which he was not even invited.

Edward Tasji, : ''You told us that no one cared or responded to the Armenian allegations. I have been doing just that for the past 40 years. Thanks to Ata Erim, my book will be published soon that will tell my story, based solely on my personal experience.

Ataov responded by stating that he knew Edward Tasji's efforts and thanked fo all he has been doing, but that he never said that here or elsewhere no one had responded to Armenian allegations..

Selected Books by Prof. Dr. Turkkaya Ataov
1. Osmanlı'nin Son Doneminde Ermeniler, August 2002, Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi Kultur, Sanat ve Yayin Kurulu Baskanligi.
The book, edited by Ataov, contains 14 articles written by experts on the Armenian issue, including Prof. Justin McCarty and Prof. Yusuf Halacoglu.

2. The Armenian Question, Conflict, Trauma, & Objectivity

3. An American Source (1895) on the Armenian Question

4. Hitler and the Armenian Question

5. A Statement Wrongly Attributed to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
Documents on the Armenian Question: Forged and Authentic, 1985and many others.Ataov also stated that he had translated My Name is Aram into Turkish, one of many books written by William Saroyan, born in Fresno, California, to Armenian parents who migrated from Bitlis around 1910. Saroyan happens to be my favourite American author, who was a complex man as told by his son in a book The Last Rites.

Yuksel Oktay, PECivil EngineerNew JerseyNote: Prof. Turkkaya Ataov had made a similar presentation on the Armenian Issue at the Turkish Center back in 1988.
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