Tall Armenian Tale

 

The Other Side of the Falsified Genocide

 

  Taner Akcam's Ethics as a Scholar  
HOME
First Page
Background
Scenario
End-of-argument

 

SECTIONS
Quotes
Thoughts
Census
Questions
Reviews
Major Players
Letters
Cumulative
Search
Links & Misc.

Translate

COMMENT
Mahmut Ozan
Edward Tashji
Sam Weems
Others
 

 The following report was written by Turkish-American Meltem Deniz.

 

 
TANER AKCAM AND HIS “OTTOMAN TURKISH” AND HIS ETHICS AS A SCHOLAR…….



Taner Akcam, unfortunately being presented as a history scholar who read the Ottoman Archives in Ottoman Turkish, apparently does not even know Ottoman Turkish or is not hesitant to step on ethics accepted in academia. I was always wondering where and when he found the time to learn and read the archives, taking his past into consideration. Here is a very good example, a proof of his lack of knowledge and misinterpretation and I will let you judge about his ethics.

Taner Akcam

Taner Akcam at an
Armenian conference

Mr. Akcam presents the following archive, PARTIALLY, (citing from the book “Armenians in the Ottoman Archives” published by the Archive Department in Turkey) in his article as a proof of genocide, stating that probably this archive skipped from the Archive Department’s attention (implying that they wouldn’t otherwise publish it).

Let’s first present it EXACTLY the way he does in his article published in a Turkish Newspaper YENI BINYIL, October 1, 2000: …He summarizes the archive and cites some of the lines in its original. (Lines cited in original are in Italics and underlined.)

Burada, Devlet Arsivleri Genel Müdürlügünün, Osmanli Belgelerinde Ermeniler (1915-1920) kitabinda (herhalde gözden kaçirarak) yayinladiklari bir belgeye deginmek istiyorum.

I want to mention a document here from the book named “Armenians in the Ottoman Archives” published by the Archives Department (I think it skipped their attention).

Dahiliye Nezareti, 29 Haziran (12 Temmuz) 1915 tarihinde Di-yarbakir´a sifreli bir telgraf çeker. Telgraf´ta, Vilayet dahilindeki Ermenilerle diger Hristiyanlarin

katledildikleri, "ez cümle ahiren Diyarbekir´den sevk olunan eshas vasitasiyla Mardin´de murahassa ile Ermenilerden ve diger Hristiyan ahaliden” 700 kisinin geceleri sehirden harice çikarilarak koyun gibi bogazlatildirildigi, öldürülenlerin toplam sayisinin 2000 kisi civarinda tahmin olundugu aktarilir.

Ministry of Internal Affair, on 29th of June (12th of July) 1915, sends a coded telegraph to Diyarbakir. In this telegraph, it is stated that within the city of Diyarbakir, Armenians and other Christians are killed, “Briefly, the Armenian religious leader and some of the Armenians and other Christians in Mardin, a total of 700 people, were taken outside the city at nights by the help of the officers who were recently sent from Diyarbakir and were choked like sheep [‘choked like sheep’ (Koyun gibi bogazlattirildigi..) is an expression and implies great dislike and disapproval and criticism — here it sounds like as if this expression is used by Akcam while summarizing the archive as it is not quoted], and the total number of people died is probably about 2000.

Ve "buna seri ve kati bir netice verilmezse... bi´l umum Hristiyanlarin katledilmelerinden korkuldugu" bildirilir.

And the telegraph states that “if this situation is not ended right away, it’s feared that many more Christians may be killed.”

Telgraf su cümle ile biter; Telegraph ends with the following sentence;

"Ermeniler hakkinda ittihaz edilen tedabir-i inzibatiye ve siyasiyenin diger Hristiyanlara tesmili kat´iyyen gayr-i ca´iz oldugundan efkar-i umumiye üzerinde pek fena te´sir birakacak ve bi´l-hassa ale´l-itlak Hristiyanlarin hayatini tehdid edecek bu kabil vekayi´a derhal hitam verilmesi ve hakikat-i halin isari." (Taner is citing this part in Ottoman Turkish — knowing the public wouldn’t understand a word — therefore I am not going to translate to you either at this time)

Belgenin dili son derece açiktir. Ermeniler için kararlastirilmis olan siyasetin, diger Hristiyanlara uygulanmamasi gerektigi hatirlatilmakta ve Ermeniler için uygulanan öldürme eylemlerinin, diger Hristiyanlari da kapsayacak sekilde yapilmasina bir son verilmesi istenmektedir. Bu belgeyi Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devletinin
bir kurumu yayinliyor. Yorumunu ise, Sükrü Elekdag ile Gündüz Aktan'a birakiyorum.

What this document says is very clear. In this telegraph, it is reminded that the policy applied to Armenians shall not be applicable to other Christians, exterminations are limited to Armenians and should not include the other Christians. This document is printed by a department of the Turkish Republic. [Akcam implies that this is ironic]. I will let Sukru Elekdag and Gunduz Aktan [Government officials] explain.

[He thinks (or he claims he “thinks”) the document escaped the Archive Department’s eyes and ironically implies he caught them red handed and tries to convince the readers that it probably is the case.]

 


I got curious and read the original lines of the archive with the help of an Ottoman-Turkish dictionary. When I read and translated the part Akcam cited, to modern Turkish, I understood right away that certain things do not make any sense. First of all,  no where is it implied that it was “okay to kill Armenians”…..Second of all, why the person who wrote this telegraph would imply “It’s okay to kill Armenians but don’t touch the other Christians”, but at the same time is concerned with lives of all the Christians, indiscriminately…

Moreover, a government who wants to exterminate the Armenians because of the ‘nationality concepts in Europe’ would not even care not to discriminate the other Christians, as almost there is no Turk who is not a Moslem…. Wouldn’t it be nice to kill two birds with one stone?

First, I tried to list all the possibilities why Akcam would misinterpret…While doing that, I realized how “sensitive” it is to read the archives. For example;

kabil vekayi vs kabîl vekayi (with a “۸” on the i
[kabîl] instead of a dot — such as a vs ấ)

kabil means = possible to occur, nothing to surprise, probable….

Whereas…
kabîl ( with a “۸” on the i instead of a regular i) means “as such”… “of this kind”…

Here are some more and striking examples….

This is “hậl” in Ottoman Turkish…which means condition, situation…

This is “hậl” as well, in Ottoman Turkish…but this one means “uncle”... mother’s brother….(watch the little dot on L shape letter which is the only difference and excuse my drawings..) but for some reason it also means the nevus on your body….

Briefly, reading the “Ottoman Archives in Ottoman Turkish” requires extensive and special training. An archive expert is some one who knows the Arabic Alphabet, Arabic, Persian and Turkish grammar. Otherwise, it would be reading the archives, which have already been read by others.

Akcam... (is) not only uneducated but also untruthful

 

I finally reached a retired Ottoman History professor in New York, who knows Ottoman Turkish, Professor…... He said even the Armenians are now criticizing Mr. Akcam; he’s not only uneducated but also untruthful, and convinced me to find the archive and read the document in whole…

I found the book (Armenians in the Ottoman Archives, 1995) in the internet (www.devletarsivleri.gov.tr). The book is a collection of Ottoman Archives related to Armenian deportations. The archive is placed in the section where security measures taken with regard to deportations are discussed. I read the whole mentioned archive. (Attached copies of it both in original Arabic Alphabet and Latin Alphabet). Once I read the whole document in full, I judged Akcam’s morals rather than his knowledge. Here is what the telegraph states (written by Talat Pasha):

Son zamânlarda vilâyet dâhilindeki Ermeniler ile bilâ-tefrîk-i mezheb H*rîstiyanlar hakkinda katl-i âmlar tertib olunduğu ve ez-cümle ahîren Diyârbekir'den sevk olunan e*hâs vâs*tas*yle Mardin'de murahhasa ile Ermenilerden ve di*er Hirîstiyan ahâlîden yedi yüz ki*inin geceleri *ehirden hârice çikarilarak koyun gibi
boğazlatdirildiği ve simdiye kadar bu katl-i âmlarda maktűl olanlar*n iki bin ki*i tahmîn olundu*u ve buna serî‘ ve kat‘î bir netîce verilmezse civâr vilâyâtdaki ahâli-i *slâmiyenin de k*yâm ederek bi'l-uműm H*rîstiyanlar*n katletmelerinden korkuldu*u istihbâr edilmi*dir. Ermeniler hakk*nda ittihâz edilen tedâbir-i inzibâtiye ve siyâsiyenin di*er H*ristiyanlara te*mîli kat‘iyyen gayr-i câ’iz oldu*undan efkâr-* uműmiyye üzerinde pek fenâ te’sîr b*rakacak ve bi'l-hâssa ale'l-itlâk H*rîstiyanlar*n hayât*n* tehdîd edecek bu kabîl vekâyi‘a derhâl hitâm verilmesi ve hakîkat-* hâlin i*‘âr*. Fî 29 Haziran sene [1]331 (Holdwater: the asterisks represent special Turkish characters... I "translated" some of them, but not all.)

In the past few days, we are reported about Armenians and other Christians, that massacres are committed and briefly, in Mardin, 700 people of Armenians and other Christians including the Armenian priest were taken outside the town at nights and were choked like sheep by the help of the officers who were recently sent from Diyarbakir, and until this time the number of people who died is thought to be about 2000 and if this is not ended right away, it is feared that Moslems in surrounding towns will be encouraged and start massacring all the Christians. Because the application of the security measures and policies undertaken with regard to Armenians is strictly forbidden to include other Christians, such incidents, that could leave a terrible effect on the general public, and particularly could endanger the lives absolutely of all the Christians, must be ended immediately, and what the truth is about the situation (hakîkat-* hâl) must be reported.(to himself (Talat Pasha).

Date: June 29, 1331 (July 12, 1915)

Briefly, Talat Pasha heard a “rumor”, so many people were killed, “strangled like sheep”…and please pay attention…those are his words….and more importantly heard that among the ones deported, there are other Christians who were not Armenians…that’s what he exactly means by “the security measures and policies shall not include other Christians”…and I will explain that why. Let’s also take into consideration that the telegraph is written during the time-period where it is feared that Moslems will organize a “revenge attack’ as a respond to the deaths of about 90,000 Turks killed by Armenian rebels in Kars-Ardahan, Van and Bitlis.

 


 

I perfectly understand why the Archive Department put this archive in the book. I also understand that it’s not because “it escaped their attention.” However, I still would like to ask a couple of questions:

Taner Akcam

Taner Akcam at fifty, a sociologist
working as "historian," at the
Univ. of Minnesota... which houses
the partly Armenian-supported
"genocide studies" institute,
Stephen Feinstein's CHGS.
(photo, NY Times
)

1) When even Talat Pasha is not sure, wants to learn what the truth is, whether indeed 700 people were deported, and if those deported included other Christians, and if deaths occurred and if the total of deaths is 2000, why does Mr.Akcam present this as if indeed the archive is “documenting” that such a thing happened, and happened within the numbers presented?

2) Let’s assume Mr.Akcam is quite pessimistic and assumes the “rumor” is definitely correct by all means. I can’t blame him as it is apparent, Talat Pasha also took it seriously…...With what kind of “thought process” he concludes that Talat Pasha implies “it’s okay to kill the Armenians, but that shall not include the other Christians”?

3) If Talat Pasha “gives permission to kill the Armenians”, why would he describe what he heard as “strangled like sheep”? For an official in the highest rank to use that kind of a “slang” term, which is not Ottoman Turkish at all and shines in the whole archive and implies a great disapproval and disgust, summarizes the whole story to some one who knows the Turkish language. Any one who knows Turkish can also easily understand that Talat Pasha was obviously very angry and frustrated. And it is apparent, he is not concerned if his Kurdish fellows would be upset when he says “terrible effect on the general public”…He is concerned if indeed such killings occurred, at least one of the effects could be to encourage the Moslems as people can say “Hey, if the government is permitting, let’s do it”. Doesn’t Talat Pasha know that it would not matter for the public whether you kill only the Armenians or other Christians on the side?

Deportation was not fun….for any body…It is not fun your neighbor for 20-years becomes your enemy overnight. Nor could it have been fun for the government to maintain the security of its country, at the same time of its people while inside and out in war. And definitely it is not an easy task to tell the difference between “a Moslem” vs “a terrorist”.

The Americans who harassed Moslems after September 11 did not take any order from the government and definitely it was not a “systematically-well planned” act.


 

 

 Related:


 Fellow "Leftist" Turkish Turncoat Professor Halil Berktay reportedly based these views, relying upon (it looks like) the questionable translation capabilities of his friend, Taner Akcam; Sukru Elekdag sets the record straight.

 

  

 

ARTICLES
Analyses
"West" Accounts
Historical
Academic
Crimes
Terrorists
Politics
Jewish
Miscellaneous
Reference

 

REBUTTAL
Armenian Views
Geno. Scholars

 

MEDIA
General
Turks in Movies
Turks in TV

 

ABOUT
This Site
Holdwater
  ©  



THE PURPOSE OF TALL ARMENIAN TALE (TAT)
...Is to expose the mythological “Armenian genocide,” from the years 1915-16. A wartime tragedy involving the losses of so many has been turned into a politicized story of “exclusive victimhood,” and because of the prevailing prejudice against Turks, along with Turkish indifference, those in the world, particularly in the West, have been quick to accept these terribly defamatory claims involving the worst crime against humanity. Few stop to investigate below the surface that those regarded as the innocent victims, the Armenians, while seeking to establish an independent state, have been the ones to commit systematic ethnic cleansing against those who did not fit into their racial/religious ideal: Muslims, Jews, and even fellow Armenians who had converted to Islam. Criminals as Dro, Antranik, Keri, Armen Garo and Soghoman Tehlirian (the assassin of Talat Pasha, one of the three Young Turk leaders, along with Enver and Jemal) contributed toward the deaths (via massacres, atrocities, and forced deportation) of countless innocents, numbering over half a million. What determines genocide is not the number of casualties or the cruelty of the persecutions, but the intent to destroy a group, the members of which are guilty of nothing beyond being members of that group. The Armenians suffered their fate of resettlement not for their ethnicity, having co-existed and prospered in the Ottoman Empire for centuries, but because they rebelled against their dying Ottoman nation during WWI (World War I); a rebellion that even their leaders of the period, such as Boghos Nubar and Hovhannes Katchaznouni, have admitted. Yet the hypocritical world rarely bothers to look beneath the surface, not only because of anti-Turkish prejudice, but because of Armenian wealth and intimidation tactics. As a result, these libelous lies, sometimes belonging in the category of “genocide studies,” have become part of the school curricula of many regions. Armenian scholars such as Vahakn Dadrian, Peter Balakian, Richard Hovannisian, Dennis Papazian and Levon Marashlian have been known to dishonestly present only one side of their story, as long as their genocide becomes affirmed. They have enlisted the help of "genocide scholars," such as Roger Smith, Robert Melson, Samantha Power, and Israel Charny… and particularly  those of Turkish extraction, such as Taner Akcam and Fatma Muge Gocek, who justify their alliance with those who actively work to harm the interests of their native country, with the claim that such efforts will help make Turkey more" democratic." On the other side of this coin are genuine scholars who consider all the relevant data, as true scholars have a duty to do, such as Justin McCarthy, Bernard Lewis, Heath Lowry, Erich Feigl and Guenter Lewy. The unscrupulous genocide industry, not having the facts on its side, makes a practice of attacking the messenger instead of the message, vilifying these professors as “deniers” and "agents of the Turkish government." The truth means so little to the pro-genocide believers, some even resort to the forgeries of the Naim-Andonian telegrams or sources  based on false evidence, as Franz Werfel’s The Forty Days of Musa Dagh. Naturally, there is no end to the hearsay "evidence" of the prejudiced pro-Christian people from the period, including missionaries and Near East Relief representatives, Arnold Toynbee, Lord Bryce, Lloyd George, Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, and so many others. When the rare Westerner opted to look at the issues objectively, such as Admirals Mark Bristol and Colby Chester, they were quick to be branded as “Turcophiles” by the propagandists. The sad thing is, even those who don’t consider themselves as bigots are quick to accept the deceptive claims of Armenian propaganda, because deep down people feel the Turks are natural killers and during times when Turks were victims, they do not rate as equal and deserving human beings. This is the main reason why the myth of this genocide has become the common wisdom.