Ottawa – Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey criticized Turkish nationalism at the Annual Congress of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Duzce, North-western Turkey. In his speech, on May 23, Mr. Erdogan called the Kemalist foundation of Turkey “fascist” because of the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian, Greek, Jewish, Kurdish, Assyrian and other minorities by the Turkish Government. 

 

"For years, those of different identities have been kicked out of our country.…This was not done with common sense. This was done with a fascist approach," Erdogan said at the AKP conference. 

 

"For many years," Erdogan continued, "various facts took place in this country to the detriment of ethnic minorities who lived here. They were ethnically cleansed because they had a different ethnic cultural identity. The time has arrived for us to question ourselves about why this happened and what we have learned from all of this. There has been no analysis of this right up until now. In reality, this behavior is the result of a fascist conception. We [AKP] have also fallen into this grave error," said the Turkish prime minister.

 

Coinciding with Erdogan’s statement, “Today’s Zaman”, one of the largest-circulation dailies in Turkey, published on the same day an article titled “Why the Deep State Targets Christians”. The 'deep state' is a ultra-nationalist clandestine group whose members are former Turkish army, intelligence services, nationalist journalists, and academics. The damning article exposed the role of the 'deep state' in targeting the Christian minority of Turkey. Furthermore, the article reported that senior members of the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), the party in power in 1915 and the architects of the Armenian Genocide, later became leading politicians in the new Republic of Turkey. The latter has implemented the same racist and xenophobic policies of CUP under different names and forms.  

 

Minority groups within Turkey have welcomed Erdogan's statement. Silvio Ovadio, a Turkish-Jewish community leader, suggested that individuals from all religious denominations have given their approval to Erdogan's statement. The Turkish-Jewish community has declined to 20,000 while other minority communities have decreased in larger numbers than the Jewish community. The tiny Greek and Armenian media also welcomed Erdogan's criticism of Ankara's discriminatory policies on minorities, though casting doubt about his sincerity.

 

Unfortunately, some of the "fascists" the Turkish prime minister mentioned now operate also in Canada. Despite the steadfast recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the Canadian Government,  the “fascists” lobbying efforts continue to reverse the House of Commons' and the Government of Canada's reaffirmation of the historical reality of the Armenian Genocide. Erdogan's statement will undoubtedly help the Turkish prime minister in his struggle to fend off these sinister forces which are casting a dark shadow on the future of Turkish people.

 

The President of the Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC), Dr. Girair Basmadjian said it is too early to judge the significance of the above developments in Turkey. He considered Erdogan’s announcement an improvement in the domestic policies of Turkey and a serious step towards repentance for his predecessors' crimes against humanity and their refusal to acknowledge responsibility for  the Armenian Genocide.

 

“Since the creation of modern Turkey, successive governments have adopted a policy of Turkification and have mistreated minorities. Erdogan’s declaration is encouraging and a first by a Turkish prime minister to break away from the taboos and the policies of the past,” said Basmadjian, adding that he hoped the Turkish people will finally break away from the yoke of the “fascist” policies of genocide denial, ethnic cleansing, oppression, the restriction on freedom of speech, and the undemocratic article 301 of the Turkish penal code and instead choose Erdogan’s version which could lead Turkey to peaceful coexistence with its neighbours and regional actors and bring Turkey closer to democratic Europe.

 

“Only time will tell whether Erdogan’s version will succeed to lead Turkey to international integration over the fascist racial purification concepts of previous Turkish governments," concluded Dr. Basmadjian .

 

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The ANCC is the largest and the most influential Canadian-Armenian grassroots political organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout Canada and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCC actively advances the concerns of the Canadian-Armenian community on a broad range of issues.

 

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Le CNAC est l'organisation politique canadienne-arménienne la plus large et influentielle. Collaborant avec une série de bureaux, chapitres et souteneurs à travers le Canada et des organisations affiliées à travers le monde, le CNAC s'occupe activement des inquiétudes de la communauté canadienne-arménienne.