Keghart
Editorial, 13 February 2014
Hasan Cemal is a Turkish author and prominent newspaper editor. He is one of the few people in Turkey’s elite to recognize the Genocide. He has traveled to Yerevan to pay his respects to the
victims of the Genocide at the Dzidzernagapert Memorial. From Kemalist family background, Cemal says his friend Hrant Dink opened his heart and historian Taner Akcam opened his mind to the reality of the Genocide. Two years ago he wrote “1915: the Armenian Genocide”. He will donate proceeds from the sale of the book’s English version to the Hrant Dink Foundation. Hasan Cemal is the grandson of Cemal (Jemal) Pasha, a member of the trio who ordered the Genocide.
Editorial, 13 February 2014
Hasan Cemal is a Turkish author and prominent newspaper editor. He is one of the few people in Turkey’s elite to recognize the Genocide. He has traveled to Yerevan to pay his respects to the victims of the Genocide at the Dzidzernagapert Memorial. From Kemalist family background, Cemal says his friend Hrant Dink opened his heart and historian Taner Akcam opened his mind to the reality of the Genocide. Two years ago he wrote “1915: the Armenian Genocide”. He will donate proceeds from the sale of the book’s English version to the Hrant Dink Foundation. Hasan Cemal is the grandson of Cemal (Jemal) Pasha, a member of the trio who ordered the Genocide.
In recent years Cemal has delivered speeches in North America—often to Armenian gatherings–about his transformation from a Genocide denier to someone who acknowledges the Ottoman-ordered Genocide of the Armenians. It makes sense to listen to this voice.
On Jan. 19 Cemal was in Toronto, at a gathering organized by the AGBU, the Armenian Association of Toronto, and the Bolsahay Cultural Association of Toronto, to commemorate the assassination of Hrant Dink seven years ago. After narrating his tortuous metamorphosis/epiphany of Genocide recognition, he advised Armenians—particularly Diaspora Armenians—that rather than address the Turkish state Armenians should change strategy and build bridges to Turkish society and tell Turkish citizens the factual version of the Genocide. Considering that for a century Armenians have been unable to shake the Turkish state from its steadfast denialist policy, Cemal’s advice sounds eminently sound.
Unfortunately, there was much in Cemal’s words which Armenians would find disheartening. To bring about peace between the two peoples, Turks and Armenians should recognize each other’s pain relating to the First World War, he said. Many Armenians may find the suggestion offensive since it could imply that Armenians were responsible for the Turkish pain. Yes, Turks suffered, but it was Turkey’s doing: Turkey entered the war; it suffered casualties; lost the war; and lost its imperial lands and possessions. Armenians were not responsible for the Turkish pain, unless one speculates on the murderer’s guilt feelings for his crime.
While it would be understandable if Cemal grieved the assassination of his grandfather, he shouldn’t have insulted the Armenians, who assassinated Jemal Pasha, by calling them a “gang”. The Armenians responsible for the slaying of the monster were exercising—in an infinitesimal degree—their right to punish the killer of more than a million of their compatriots.
Armenians would also find Cemal’s recommendations to Ankara on how to bring about just peace between the two nations impractical and less than satisfactory. He said the Turkish state should stop its denial of the Genocide and should apologize to the Armenians, but not necessarily use the “G” word. This is far short of the justified demands of Armenians. An apology without uttering “Genocide” is an irrelevant—if not insincere–gesture.
As part of the solution to the conflict, Turkey should grant citizenship to Diaspora Armenians who want to live in Turkey, advised Cemal. What would be the worth of such “largesse”? How many Armenians in Paris would pack their bags and move to Zeitoun (now Suleimaniye), to Urfa (Sanliurfa) or to Dersim (Tunceli)? The idea of returning to Turkey is not only an airy-fairy concept but could be physically dangerous to Armenians. Such an invitation would also be damaging to the Armenian Cause because Ankara would gain PR points—by appearing friendly to Armenians—while knowing full well that Armenians would not return.
Cemal said Turkey should offer a “financial package” to Armenians who want to return to Turkey. One would think Cemal would know that Armenians—scattered to the four corners of the world because of the Genocide—have no great motivation to uproot themselves from distant Buenos Aires, Los Angeles, Sydney or Montreal. Incidentally, at no time did Cemal acknowledge the historicity of Armenia. When referring to Western Armenia, he invariably used “Asia Minor”, “Anatolia” and “Eastern Turkey” as descriptive.
As a newspaper editor (“Chumhuriyet”, “Sabah” and “Milliyet”) and author of 11 books on politics, Cemal has surely heard what Armenians have said countless times in the past century. Armenians want compensation for their horrific loss and the return of parts of their homeland (Kars and Ardahan, Ararat, the lands west of Ararat come to mind) as a means to restore historical justice for the theft of our 4,000-year-old homeland, the slaying of 1.5 million Armenians, and the deportation of some 500,000. According to a recent estimate by actuaries in France, the material losses of the Armenians amount to $3 trillion. Compensation for the moral and cultural losses can’t be estimated. Appropriated Armenian property helped fund Kemal’s “modern Turkey”. Turkey’s incalculable debt to the Armenian nation is further compounded by the pain and suffering of a whole nation in exile for 100 years.
As someone who follows closely Armenian/Turkish political relations said recently, Cemal is an anomaly, and anomalies cannot develop normally into a tangible asset. However, Cemal is a man who knows how Turkish politics functions. Armenians should heed his progressive, pioneering and promising voice. Armenians should also honor Cemal for risking his life to tell the truth about the Genocide to his fellow Turks. Thus far there has been no 2 a.m. knock to his door.
While Cemal’s brave proselytizing has to be commended, it falls far short of the just demands of Armenians. We hope that Cemal and future Cemals would take the logical next step and demand that Turkey respond positively to the just demands of Armenians. As Americans say, “an apology and 50 cents will not get you a cup of coffee.”
Keghart
Keghart
8 comments
Never Trust
Never trust a Turk or his words. I have been to Turkey. I'll never forget the diabolic look in their eyes.
Cemal and Western Armenia
Of course Cemal (Jemal Pasha´s grandson) would not pronounce "Western Armenia". He mentions Anadolu or East Turkey. Understand this, please. While he pities us and expresses solace, etc., he cannot give up his being a Turk. That's what he is. You should understand that.
Before anything and all the rhetoric, he, Taner Akcam or Ayse Gunaysu should preach in Turkey about what Turkey did to us, since we know better than them what their countrymen did do us. Tell them very politely. Like Hrant Dink did, sacrificing his life for the unrelenting countrymen of theirs.
Hasgtsoghin shad parev.
Est du courage ou un lourd fardeau de porter le nom de Cemal?
C'est courageux de la Part de Mr Cemal de reconnaitre les crimes qui sont dus sur ordres de son geniteur mais connaissant les fouberies a la Turque de son pays je me demande si cela n'est pas fait pour faire dispersion dans le milieu Armenien ? Et pourquoi avoir attendu presque 1 siecle pour denoncer les crimes de son pays envers les Armeniens?
Moi pour etre convaincu j'aimerais qu'il y est beaucoup de gens comme Mr Cemal qui proclameraient que la justice soit faite sur ce genocide et de dedommager les descendants des rescapes du genocide et que leurs territoires leurs soient restitués ; Cette evalution resterait a l'appreciation d'experts Armeniens pour chiffrer les montants des dedommageants de chaque Armenien du monde entier ayant etes victimes du genocide ; Deja il faudrait que la Turquie reconnaisse son genocide elle ne peut pas trainer derriere elle pendant des siecles les cadavres de 1 500 000 victimes.
Je pense qu'acctuellement en Turquie la nouvelle genération qui a poursuivis de longues etudes sur le passé de leurs pays, doivent aussi vouloir se defaire de ce boulet qui traine leurs pays dans la boue vis a vis des pays civilisés ; Moi pour mon compte personnel j'ouvre mes bras aux ames de bonnes volontés Turques pour retrouver l'amitié et l'enttente de nos 2 pays comme elle se trouvé avant 1915;ma bouteille est jeté a la mer voyons voir si elle echouera vers le bosphore entre des mains de justice et de paix.
Cemal, Akçam, Gunaysu
I do not think that it is fair to put Hasan Cemal, Ayse Gunaysu, and Taner Akcam in the same basket. Gunaysu has never said or written anything that Armenians could criticize. She is often more radical, rigorous and demanding, more ethical than many Armenians. Akçam does not advise Armenians to share the suffering of Turks during WWI and does not support the "mutual suffering" tune. Neither of them has called Cemal Pasha's murderers a "gang". And they DO preach–or rather, teach–in Turkey. They write in Turkish for a Turkish public. Let us not not forget Ragip Zarakolu who is a Turk and who publishes Turkish translations of English, German or French books about the Genocide in order to educate Turks, and who has dearly paid for his work and courage.
Reconciliation?
Thank you, Keghart, for this editorial. It would be incomplete for an Armenian to look at the overtures made by Jemal Pasha's grandson and not see that there are vested interests at stake. Fixtures like him, Akcam and others may be willing to talk about what happened to the "giavours" in Western Armenia, but there is also a fair amount of stonewalling and gate-keeping going on, especially when it comes to the return of a confiscated country–homes, properties, stolen wealth and all.
By far the most effective form of transformation in Turkish society will be led by informed Turkish individuals who can better influence and liberate Turks from the false narrative and bigoted values advanced by their state and educational system. It is not up to a victimized group to play psychiatrist or social worker with the unrepentant, and especially with those who are violence-prone.
New Turks, not Young Turks
Cemal, Akcam, Zarakolu, Cetin, Gunaysu, all Turks, are revelations I would have never dreamt would be a reality in my lifetime.
It is also evident that they challenge us, not by design nor by intent but by their realities as Turks, to a new and more pragmatic paradigm. We will need to meet the Turks if not half the way but some of the way, in any event more of the way than we were ever prepared to do.
Never Trust a Turk
Never trust a Turk. I am in full agreement with Tsakoug, Gerard, and Gaytzag. Not much left for me to say.
Editorial Coincidence
Extraordinary coincidence! The editorial comes just in time as a comment to the statement made by the Turkish PM Erdogan on the Armenian issues. It's in line with what your editorial said about the position of Hasan Cemal. It's all the same. So we can now use your editorial's final words this way: ""Share pain and 50 cents will not get you a cup of coffee."
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