Thursday, January 10, 2008

THE STANCE TAKEN BY SCHOLARS TO ALLEGATIONS OF GENOCIDE

THE STANCE TAKEN BY SCHOLARS TO ALLEGATIONS OF GENOCIDE

The scientists, who perceive the history within the scientific principles, have reached the original copies and documents relating to the issue since 1925 until today, have listened to living witnesses and have made individual observations at the locations of the events. These are the scientists, who knew that the Ottoman archives were open to the researchers since 1925 and who themselves reached the documents. Therefore, only those who are as knowledgeable on this issue as they can comment on or can object to their views. For this reason, the report submitted by 69 American scientists to the members of the Assembly of Representatives in relation with the issue has great importance. (1)

�To the attention of the Members of USA Assembly of Representatives

The Turkish, Ottoman researches and the American Academicians specialized in Middle East, whose signatures are put hereunder, have agreed that the language used in decree number 192 by USA Assembly of Representatives is misleading and / or wrong in many points.

�Although we fully support the concept of �National Day of Commemorating Inhuman Behaviors�, we find the following part, in this text, unacceptable:

�. 1.5 million Armenian � originated people, who have been the victims of the genocide made in Turkey between 1915 and 1923 ��

Our disagreement focuses on the use of he words �Turkey� and �genocide� and may be summarized as follows:

From the 14th century until 1922, the area, which is called Turkey, more correctly as the �Republic of Turkey� today, was a part of the Ottoman Empire, which was a multi � religion and multi � national state. Just as it is wrong to accept the Habsburg Empire to be equivalent to the Republic of Austria of today, it is also wrong to accept the Ottoman Empire to be equivalent of to the Republic of Turkey. The Ottoman Empire, which exited from the history stage in 1922 with the Turkish Revolution gave birth to the establishment of current Republic of Turkey in 1923, was a state, which kept the lands of more than 25 states, over Southeastern Europe, Northern Africa and Middle East. The Republic of Turkey was only one of them can not be held responsible for any events that happened in the Ottoman period. But the ones, who have written the decree, wanted to give the responsibility of the �genocide� between 1915 and 1923 to Turkey by using the name �Turkey�.

As for the genocide accusation, no one, who has signed this paper, have the purpose of underrating the dimensions of the pains that the Armenians have suffered. Likewise, we have the opinion that the pains of the Muslim public in the mentioned region can not be assessed in any other way. The evidences put forward until now point out that an internal war between the communities (between the Muslim and Christian groups) has become more complex with the hunger, epidemics and the massacres and pains in and around Anatolia during the first World War. In fact, during those years, a continuous war has been suffered in the region that is not so different from the tragedy going on in Lebanon in the last decade. The losses of both the Muslim and the Christian nations are big numbers. However, there are many documents and findings that the historians must reach in order to determine the reasons of the events that resulted in the death of the Eastern Anatolian public, which includes many Christians as well as Muslims.

History is created by the statesmen and the politicians and it is written by the scientists. For the operation of this process, the scientists must be given the chance to reach the written records of the former statesmen and politicians. Until now, a big part of the archives related with this issue in the Soviet Union, Syria, Bulgaria and Turkey have been kept closed to the historians. Until these archives are reached, the history of the Ottoman Empire between 1915 � 1923 in the scope of the decree of the Assembly of Representatives numbered 192 can not be completely known.

We believe that USA Congress should encourage the full opening of the history archives relating to the issue and should not make any accusations until the historical events are fully brought into light. The accusations such as the ones in the decree number 192 of the Assembly of Representatives would unavoidably result in unfair decisions about Turkey and maybe damaging the improvement, which the historians started to record in understanding these tragic events.

As shown by the comments herein above, the history of the Ottoman � Armenians is an issue that is frequently debated among the historians and many of the historians do not share the expressions in the decree number 192. In case the congress adopts this decree, it will have tried to decide which part of the historical problem is true through laws. Such a decision basing on assumptions that are historically doubtful gives harm to the honest historical research and damages the reliability of the American legislation process.

May 19 1985

Prof. Dr. Rifaat Abou � El � Haj

History, California State University

Prof. Roderic Davison

History, George Washington University

Ass. Prof. Sarah Moment Atis

Turkish Language and Literature, Wisconsin University

Distinguished Prof. Walter Denny

Art History and Near East Researches, Massachussets University

Ass. Prof. Darl Barbir

History, Siena Institution (New York)

Dr. Alan Duben

Anthropologist, Researcher, New York

Ilhan BASGÖZ

Ural � Altay Studies Division, Turkish Researches Program Director, Indiana University

Ass. Prof. Ellen Ervin

Turkish Researches, New

York University

Prof. Daniel G. Hates

Anthropology, New York City University

Prof. Caesar Farah

Islam and Middle East History, Minnesota University

Prof. Ülkü Bates

Art History, New York City University

Prf. Carter Findley

History, Ohio State University

Prof. Gustav Bayerle

Ural � Altay Studies, Indiana University

Prof. Michael Finefrock

History, Charleston Institution

Prof. Andreas G. E. Bodroglifetti

Turkish and Iran Languages, California University

Ass. Prof. William Hickman

Turkish, California Berkeley University

Ass. Prof. Kathleen Burril

Turkish Researches, Columbia University

Ass. Prof. Frederick Latimer

History, Utah University

Prof. Alan Fisher

History, Michigan University

Prof. John Hymes

History, Glenville State

Institution

Prof. Timothy Childs

Teacher, Johns Hopkins University

Dr. Health W. Lowry

Turkish Research Institution

Inc. Washington D.C.

Prof. Shafiga Daulet

Political Science, Connecticut University

Prof. Halil Inalcik

Ottoman History, American

Art & Science Academy

Member, Chicago University

Ass. Prof. Ralph Jaeckel

Turkish, California University

Ass. Prof. Ezel Kural Shaw

History, California University

Ass. Prof. Ronald Jennings

History & Asian Researches, Illinois University

Prof. John Masson Simth, JR

History, California Berkeley University

Ass. Prof. Cornell Fleischer

History, Washington University

Dr. Svat Soucek

Turkologist, New York

Prof. Peter Golden

History, Rutgers University

Dr. Philip Soddard

Middle East Institute Director, Washington D.C.

Prof. Tom Goodrich

History, Indiana University

Prof. Frank Tachau

Political Science, Chicago,

Illinois University

Dr. Andrew Could

Ottoman History, Arizona, Flagstaff

Robert Staab

Middle East Center Vice

Director, Utah University

Prof. William Griswold

History, Colorado State University

Prof. Rhoads Murphey

Middle East Languages,

Cultures and History,

Columbia University

Prof. Tibor Halasi � Kuv

Turkish Researches, Columbia Professor

Ass. Prof. June Starr

Anthropology, Suny

Stony Brook

Distinguished Prof. J.C. Hurewitz

Former Director of Middle East Institute, Columbia University

Prof. James Stewart Robinson

Turkish researches, Michigan University

Prof. Avgdorlevy

History, Brandens University

Prof. Thomas Naff

History, Middle East

Researches Institute Director, Pennsylvania University

Prof. Bernard Lew�is

Middle East History, Princeton University

Ass. Prof. John Woods

Middle East History, Chicago University

Ass. Prof. Justin Mc Carthy

History, Louisville University

Prof. Pierre Oberling

History, New York CityUniversity

Prof. Jon Mandaville

Middle East History, Portland State University

Ass. Prof. Madeline Zilfi

History, Maryland University

Prof. Michael Meeker

Anthropology, California University

Prof. Metin Tamkoc

International Law, Texas

Tech. University

Ass. Prof. James Kelly

Turkish, Utah University

Prof. Stanford Shaw

History, California University

Ass. Ass. Prof. Kerim Bey

Southeastern University

Dr. Elaine Simth

Turkish History, Retired

Foreign Affairs Officer

Prof. Metin Kunt

Ottoman History, New York

Ass. Prof. David Thomas

History, Rhode Island Institute

Ass. Prof. William Ochsenwald

History, Virginia Polytechnic Institute

Ass. Prof. Grace M. Simth

History, California Berkeley university

Ass. Prof. Robert Olson

History, Kentucky University

Ass. Prof. Margaret L.Venzke

History, Dickinson Institute (Pennsylvania)

Ass. Prof. William Peachy

Jewish and Near East Languages & Literatures, Ohio State University

E. Prof. Donald Webster

Turkish History

Ass. Prof. Donald Quataert

History, Houston University

Prof. Walter Weiker

Political Science,

Rutgers University

Prof. Howard Reed

History, Connecticut University

Prof. Warren S .Walker

English, Turkish Oral

Stories Archive Director,

Texas Tech. University

Prof. Dank Wart Rustow

Political Science, New York City University


Invitations have been made by Turkey at different times in order to discuss the correctness of the documents put forward by the Armenians and the Armenian pretensions supported by the Western European Countries and Russia. These calls have been both directed at to the Armenian scientists and to the people, who have undertaken the Armenian propaganda. However, an important part of these people did not participate the meeting without showing any reasons. The last example of this condition has been set in the 11th Turkish History Congress that gathered in 1990.

For the first time, an �Armenian Section� had been programmed in the 11th Turkish history Congress and the foreign historians who have been �Armenian struggle Supporters� have been invited to the discussions in this section, but each of them using various excuses avoided participating in these scientific discussions.

The list of the foreign scientists invited to the 11th Turkish History Congress, held in Ankara between September 5th � 9th 1990, in relation with the Armenian problem, is given hereunder:

Prof. Dr. Heath LOWRY (participated)

Garin ZEDLIAN (did not answer)

Prof. Dr. Bernard LEWIS (could not participate)

Prof. Dr. Justin McCARTHY (participated)

Prof. Dr. Stanford SHAW (participated)

Prof. Dr. Anthony BRYER (Did not answer)

Dr. Andrew MANGO (participated)

Prof. Dr. Salahi R. SONYEL (participated)

Prof. Dr. M. MARMURA (did not answer)

Prof. Dr. Allan CUNNINGHAM (did not answer)

Prof. Dr. Robert ANCIAUX (participated)

Prof. Dr. Aryeh SHMUELEVITZ (participated)

Prof. Dr. Jak YAKAR (participated)

Prof. Dr. Hans G. MAJER (could not participate)

Prof. Dr. Wolf Dietrich HUTTEROTH (did not answer)

Prof. Dr. Klaus KREISER (could not participate)

Prof. Dr. Jean � Paul ROUX (did not answer)

Prof. Dr. Paul DUMONT (participated)

Prof. Dr. Robert MANTRAN (could not participate)

Prof. Dr. Richard HOVANNISIAN (did not answer)

Dr. Gerard LIBARDIAN (did not answer)

Dr. Levon MARASHLIAN (participated)

Prof. Dr. Vahakn DADRIAN (did not answer)

Christopher WALKER (could not participate)

Anahid Ter MIMASSIAN (could not participate)

Tessa HOFFMAN (did not answer)

REFERENCE:

(1) Yildirim, Dr. Hüsamettin, Ermeni Iddialari ve Gercekler, Ankara, 2000

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