THE
PROVOCATION OF THE OTTOMAN ARMENIANS BY THE EXTERNAL FORCES
The
Armenians within the boundaries of the Ottoman Empire were
fused with the Muslims as they are today and during the
imperial era they lived together and friendly with them for
years by having the same rights. Regardless of their status
of minority, they had a happy life with the Muslims within
the same traditions, culture and artistic movements and by
having the same opportunities for almost six centuries.
Lady Mary
Montaque stated at length in her “Orient Letters” how the
Armenians were close to the Turks and that they even read
the Bible in Turkish. The itinerant Ibn Batuta talked about
the Armenians he met while he was traveling the Anatolia in
the Seljuk period, knowing no other language than the
Turkish.
While the
situation was like that till 1827, the Armenians were
started to be provoked by the Russian intervention in the
Caucasia at the end of Ottoman-Russian war and the Russian
desire to destroy the Ottoman Empire. But, as it was known
that this provocation could not be successful within the
Ottoman boundaries and that the Armenians were not different
from the Muslims, it was intended to benefit from the
outside Armenians. Then, with the support of France and the
UK, the vain promises were made to the outside Armenians and
the hostility against the Turks was started to be
inculcated. The claims, which were aimed to be attributed to
the Armenians, were produced beyond the Ottoman boundaries
and they were rather a ruse created by the external forces.
Unfortunately, it was observed that some Armenians were
involved in this ruse.
The
analysis made by Cemal Kutay on this issue gives lessons.
According to Kutay, “the Hunchak, the first secret Armenian
revolutionary committee, was established in 1882 in
Lausanne, Switzerland by a member of the resistance movement
called Nayazbaq, son of a Georgian mother and Caucasian
Armenian father. The founders of the Troshak and Dashnak
committees, which were established respectively in 1890 and
1892 by splitting from the Hunchak, were also outside
Armenians.
While the
Russian Tsardom was trying to make the Caucasia Russian, it
was aware of the fact that the Armenians there were a factor
of instability and as they were unable of self-governing,
they would cause trouble for the Ottomans in case that they
were migrated to the eastern Anatolia. They put into action
their plan in this direction and used the Armenians for
their sake. The Ottoman Administration did, however, provide
every opportunity to the Armenians and did not make any
provocation against any foreign country. Here the divergence
of two separate states about the Armenians.
Due to this
reason, the Tsarist Russia sent the Armenians to the Eastern
Anatolia. They succeeded to insert into the Berlin Treaty
the article stating that “the Armenians cannot be banned
from settling freely anywhere they want in the Ottoman
country”. Hence, their covered aim was revealed. This plan
let to sow the first seed of hostility in Turkey from
abroad. Actually, the anarchic events in the Ottoman country
since 1882 started with the transforming the schools and
churches into the arsenals through the activities of the
Armenians sent from abroad. The support of some foreign
consulates in this affair became clearer.
When the
Armenian activities in Kahramanmaras were determined, a
delegation headed by Hussein Avni Pacha went there with the
aim of making inspection. This delegation established that
there were preparations of uprising and informed the then
Sadrazam M. Emin Ali Pacha about the situation with a
letter.
The
movement that was incited by the Russian Tsardom and British
Kingdom according to us started violently in 1882. With the
incitement of external forces, thousand of people were
murdered and Turkish villages and town were destroyed.
In the
report sent to Vienna by the Austrian Consul in Trebizond
Dr. Kemernich, it was said about the then activities of the
Armenian gang members that: “in the history, there is no
such a bloody and intolerant fanaticism having an unclear
aim”.
That an
Armenian gang occupied the Ottoman Bank on August 26, 1896
in Istanbul and they said they were awaiting the arrival of
the British vessels to Istanbul show obviously how the
provocative and vain promises influenced some Armenians.
Neither the British army did come, nor did the British
assume officially this task. The incitement of the racism in
our country by the British and the pressures on the Ottoman
leadership of France and the tsarist Russia pretending to be
protector states activated some Armenian groups and the
bloody activities of the gangs occurred in some places in
the country.
Sadrazam
Said Pasha appealed to the big states to charge an
international investigative delegation to conduct the
investigations in place. That this appeal was rejected by
London, Paris and Moscow raises some suspicions about these
three states. Why was this appeal rejected? While such an
innocent, frank and humanist proposal was accepted by
Berlin, Vienna, Madrid and Rome, what was the reason of the
rejection of these three states? What was likely to relate
to them at the end of the investigation and why that they
did not accede to this appeal? Moreover, that these three
countries made this file be closed down in the Yildiz Palace
suggests the start of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in
weakness and reveals also the authors of this collapse.
The
Armenian terrorism escalated till the attempt of
assassination against Sultan Abdulhamid, II, who said that:
“I don't believe that the authors of this attempt may be
Armenian. I think those poisoning them are trained abroad”.
This assessment was not only sentimental, but also logical.
In that time, the Minister of Treasury Ohannes Pacha, who
was very appreciated and relied by the Sultan, was Armenian.
There was no discrimination against the Armenian in the
Ottoman Empire, but there was fight against those occupying
the country. No one has the right to complain if some ones
died among those who had come with the aim of killing.
In the
Asparas Newspaper, the daily of the Dashnaksutiun published
in the US, it is said that: “the Armenian aim is to not let
any independent Turkish state be survived on earth and they
side with any person who fights against the Turks”. The
statement cannot go beyond an exaggerated foreign threat
against our country. The establishment of an Armenia within
the boundaries of Turkey is not realistic. In the Ottoman
state, there were efforts to prevent the activities of the
Armenian gangs and there were counter actions against the
assassination of thousand of Muslim Turks by them. There was
no further action.
In 1917,
upon the report of the British Consul, Sir Henry Eliot said
that: “I don't want to believe. If I believe, I should shame
of my humanity”. These atrocious attacks, which led Sir H.
Eliot to make such a statement, could not be tolerated till
the extermination of the last Muslim Turks.
The
Armenian claim, which is put forth today, does not comply
with the realities. Apart from our sources, this issue can
be determined easily through the external sources as well.
For instance, Ivan Majovsky says in his memories dated 1917
that: “In general, the press articles about the Armenian
issues are untrue. Anything written about the Armenians are
false. On June 6, I visited with Dr. Renold the
fortifications built by the revolutionaries. I was surprised
with what I saw. They said me that they would wait for 10
days, until the forces from Iran would arrive. There were
the Bulgarians and Russian Armenians among the leaders of
the revolution. The fact was that, since 1888, the Armenians
groups were pushing the country, where they feed themselves,
they live in peace and they possess all the rights, into a
civil war in a merciless and fearless way”.
In his
report dated April 18, 1918, the Lieutenant Colonel Kleboff,
commander of the Russian fortified site in Erzurum, said
that: “in the implementation of the cease-fire, it is
necessary to hand over the Turkish territories under our
occupation and evacuate them as soon as possible. The
Armenian catastrophe is above any explanation. The previous
day, I went to the headquarters of the commander General
Odichelidze upon the order that I give him explanation about
the events in Erzurum. After having listened to me, General
Odichelidze said that: 'what you have said took place in the
Turkish territories under our occupation. Here, I have found
out from a pit the bodies of more than 400 Turkish women and
children. Their hands were tied in their back and they were
slaughtered like animals' ”. The photos taken by Odichelidze
were published in the Hayat Magazine.
What do
the provocations to destroy a state depend on? Should the
idea that creates a monster murdering thousands of innocent
persons be maintained at any cost? How could be those aiming
to murder confronted? There was no reply against most of
these murders. It is also established that those who
murdered the Turks abroad had no links with Turkey. Soghomon
Tehlirian, the murderer of Talat Pasha did not have any link
with Turkey. Tehlirian was Iranian and born in Selmas city
in Iran. In Berlin, the foreign Armenians murdered the
Police Director Bedri, the governor of Beirut and Police
director-general Cemal Azmi, member of the general
headquarter and deputy president of Ittihat and Terakki Dr.
Bahaddin Sakirunder the former Ottoman administration and
the Minister of Navy Cemal Pasha under the former Ottoman
administration.
While there
was not a claim about the Armenian cause inside the country,
some other forces wished to invent such a cause through a
group of fedayees they procured. There are, therefore,
numerous documents proving the fact that some Armenians were
enabled to penetrate into Anatolia from abroad and to
conduct genocide. The Ottoman history is net and there is no
grudge in the Ottoman tradition. In times when the empire
was strong, it could be easy to prevent the speaking of the
foreign languages within the empire. Which state being
conqueror in a war in those times recognized the rights
which were given to the Byzantine people by Fatih Sultan
Mehmed when he conquered Istanbul? The first Armenian
Patriarchate was established in Istanbul in 1461 by Fatih
Sultan Mehmed. This right, which was not recognized by the
Byzantine, was given with all extent to the Armenians. An
Armenian Assembly was also established in Istanbul. The
issue was to provide to Armenians the rights that were
limited for them and enable them to live in peace and
security. This tolerance of the state, the procurement of
the rights, the freedom given to the schools and churches
led these places to become arsenals. Wasn't the manipulation
of religious affairs for the bloody politics incompatible
with the Christian faith? The revolutionary Dashnak and
Hunchak Committees tried to spread grudge and hatred against
the friendship and sympathy of the Muslim people. The
propaganda was not sufficient alone and it was necessary to
shed blood. A band of 80-90 persons half of which are the
students from Petersburg and the other half are the
Armenians living in the southern Caucasia was established
under the command of Serhis Gogoneon, a student from
Petersburg, and this band was sent to the Turkish lands in
order to shed blood in the vicinity of Kagizman. There was
nobody among them who had knowledge about Turkey. This
adventure of some adventurers did not serve anything but
murdering people.
The
Armenians in Turkey were those who were freed from the
Byzantine, Persian and Egyptian hegemony. Those escaping
from other countries and -while they were not numerous- the
foreigners who were sent as a gang during the weak times of
the Ottoman State and settled there were added to them. It
is observed that the incidents started in the weak periods
of the Ottoman State with the incitement of these bands.
In 1857,
Migirdich Harimian started the publications against the
Turks by publishing a newspaper in Van and some incidents
took place. In 1874 the Ayastafanos Treaty was concluded and
the Russians reached the gates of Istanbul. The Armenian
Patriarch Nerseq visited the Granduke Nicholas in Istanbul
and asked the establishment of Armenia in the East under the
Russian control. During the Balkan wars and World War I, the
Armenian incidents and demands increased. The fact that
these incidents and demands coincided with periods when the
Ottoman Empire was at war shows clearly that there were
involvement of the external forces in this issue.
In 1893,
Dr. Syrus Hamlin, the former principal of the American
College in Istanbul, highlighted in the Congregationalist
Review that the creator of the Armenian issue was the
Russian gold and mind.
On April
21, 1915, the Tsar Nicholas II, sent a telegraph of
congratulation for the murdering of the Turkish people in
some places by the Armenians. Edgar Granville stated that
the Russian tsars were responsible for the Armenian
movements.
Since there
was no discrimination in favor of the Turks in the Ottoman
Empire, there were Armenians in senior positions. The
foreigners, who did not wish to recognize this unity,
provoked steadily the Armenians and as a result the Armenian
incidents increased during the Russian war, Balkan war and
World War I. The Russian Tsardom, the UK and France in
particular played significant role in these issues.
By
benefiting from the fact that the Armenian schools and
churches were not under control, the foreign agents were
enabled to operate easily in these places.
With the
encouragement of some associations established abroad, such
as the Huchak and Dashnak ones, the activities of some
Armenian band resulted in the murder of many Muslims. In the
World War I, it is observed that the Armenians attempted to
conduct genocide in our eastern provinces and they tortured
and murdered hundreds of thousand women, children and old
people. The Armenian newspaper Gonsuk in the USA said with
proud in May 1915 that: “we have not left anyone in Van
apart from 15.000 Turks”. This statement shows the extent of
the massacre they made only in this city with the population
of 270.000. The reason of the decision of the Ottoman Empire
to relocate the Armenians with their families, who were
conducting band activities in order to stab the Ottoman
armies in the back, is similar to the measure taken by the
USA against those of Japan origin during World War II.
The Liberal
Party in the UK also supported the Hunchak password saying
that “if you want Armenia to be established, kill your
Turkish neighbor”. This increases the suspicion that the
origin of the Hunchak password was foreign. And what about
such a password of those talking about a genocide that was
conducted against themselves?
There may
be circles in France which support the Armenians for a long
time. In February 1916, however, Mr. Toucher stated in a
conference in the club of Oeuvre D'orient that: “the claim
that the Armenians are murdered by the Ottomans in 1915 is
untrue and it is impossible to rely on the Armenian
publications in this issue. During the Turkish-Russian War,
the Armenian revolutionaries murdered the Turks and it is
established that the Armenian partisans were armed”.
The head of
the National Armenian Delegation Nubar Pasha stated and
confessed that the great part of the French forces fighting
against the Turks were the Armenians. In fact, the
employment of the Armenians in the armies of the foreign
countries led to nothing but deluding the innocent
Armenians; but it enabled the foreign armies to have less
losses. As a result of the violations of some Armenian
bands, some clashes, which were aimed only to confront, may
only be made as self-defense.
Those who
occasionally disrupted the peaceful coexistence with the
Armenians for centuries were not the Ottoman Administration.
It is well-known how the Muslim Turks are respectful for the
other religions. The foreign assessments confirm this fact
as well. For instance, the General Brozat Shellendorf, who
had fought for three and a half years in the Ottoman army
stated in the review of Deutsche Algemeine Zeitung on July
24, 1921 that: “the Turks are the most tolerant people in
the world towards those of other religions”. In his article,
Shellendorf indicated that the Armenians conducted sabotages
against the Turkish armies, made stealthy attacks and carved
the eyes of the people in the villages in may times.
Some
Armenians do not deny they were incited by the foreigners.
S. Papridian states in his work called “Armenian Crisis and
Rebirth”, which is published in Boston in 1905, that: “we
owe the promises and suggestion of revolution to the
Russian”. Edgar Gronville also stated that the racial
conflicts in the Ottoman Empire were provoked by the
foreigners.
The US
Senate declined the proposition of the establishment of an
Armenia under its mandate on the grounds that the events
were created artificially. (These Days Daily-India/January
2007)
