Tag: Turkish Armenian Community

  • Celebrating their Turkish-Armenian heritage

    Celebrating their Turkish-Armenian heritage

    Lokma, börek and doner kebab — they’re all on the menu when members of Southern California’s Turkish-Armenian community gather. Paloma Esquivel writes of one such party in Winnetka:

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    The occasion for this feast is Doner Night, an event sponsored by the Organization of Istanbul Armenians, a group of more than 1,000 Turkish Armenians in Southern California. Of the hundreds of thousands of Armenians in California, Turkish Armenians make up a small fraction. In addition to Armenian, they also speak Turkish, listen to Turkish music and have adopted many of the traditions of that country.

    There are times, some said, when this closeness with Turkey — those who remained in that country were sometimes discouraged from following their own traditions and culture — has made it difficult to gain acceptance from other Armenians. But that is changing. Organizations like the one hosting this event have found ways to embrace both elements of the culture.

    via Celebrating their Turkish-Armenian heritage – latimes.com.

  • “Most part of Istanbul buildings of 19th century was built by Armenians”

    “Most part of Istanbul buildings of 19th century was built by Armenians”

    By Times.am at 23 April, 2011, 12:27 pm

    The Turkish councilor of the CNN Ferhat Boratav has spoken about Armenian-Turkish relations and noted this theme had been discussed much recently and many people announced about their Armenian roots, many books were published on the theme and many films are shot. “Aravot” newspaper wrote about this.

    “The whole memory is found out in this way. The exhibition devoted to the Armenian architecture was opened in Istanbul last year and many people accepted with amazing the most part of Istanbul buildings of 19th century was built by Armenians.”

    /Times.am/

    via Turkish journalist: “Most part of Istanbul buildings of 19th century was built by Armenians” | Times.am.

  • Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople: Turkey did not debar Armenian community from electing its Patriarch

    Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople: Turkey did not debar Armenian community from electing its Patriarch

    Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople issued a statement, saying the Turkish Government did not debar the Armenian community from electing its patriarch.

    patriarch“The rumors the Turkish State tries to debar Armenians from electing a patriarch are unfounded and untrue.  A new patriarch will be elected after Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mersrob Mutafyan’s death, according to Armenian church’s traditions.  Any change on the matter is not being discussed,” the patriarchate said in a statement.

    As NEWS.am reported previously, Istanbul Armenians collected 5, 359 signatures to oppose Turkish Government’s decision appointing a patriarch vicar replacing current Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mesrob Mutafyan.

    The initiative group “We want to elect our own patriarch” organized a press conference, saying they want to elect a religious leader who will represent Armenian community, Turkish Haberler reports.

    The group stressed there are no conflicts within the local Armenian community on the matter and they have no problems with the Turkish government’s decision to appoint Aram Ateshyan a patriarch vicar.

    The group of Istanbul Armenians claimed their right to elect a patriarch was violated and they collected 5,359 signatures to appeal to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to restore it.

    Famous Istanbul Armenians Harut Ozer, Tigran Altun, Markar Esayan, Karo Palyan and others met with the reporters.

    Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mersrob Mutafyan is permanently ill. He was elected patriarch for life in 1998 by the Armenian community. One group within the Armenian community considers they should elect a new patriarch, whereas another group, objects to this, saying it is against traditions to elect a new patriarch while the elected one is still alive.

    via Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople: Turkey did not debar Armenian community from electing its Patriarch | Armenia News – NEWS.am.

  • Keeping Faith in Istanbul: Armenian community strong says Dink successor

    Keeping Faith in Istanbul: Armenian community strong says Dink successor

    Keeping Faith in Istanbul: Armenian community strong says Dink successor

    Photo: Gayane Mkrtchyan/ArmeniaNow.com

    Getronagan High School Istanbul, Turkey.

    By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN

    ArmeniaNow reporter

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    Istanbul-based Armenian Bagrat Estukian visits the shore of Bosphorus straits each last Sunday of a month to participate in a holy mass, served in Surp Yerits Mangants Church in the Armenian ‘Boyaji Gyugh’ district in Istanbul.

    “More than 30 Armenian churches operate in Istanbul,” says Estukian, editor of the Armenian edition of Istanbul-based ‘Agos’ daily. “After the massacres, our ancestors came to Istanbul, hoping to find freedom here. Istanbul used to differ from other Turkish towns then, but the fact was that it was again Turkey.”

    The generations of genocide survivors lived under Turkish Armenophobic policy, and many, not being able to stand it anymore, left Turkey. If at the end of 1915, more than 300,000 Genocide survivors lived in Istanbul, now the population of the Armenian community in Istanbul is only 60,000-70,000.

    The Armenian national hospital Surb Prkich (Church of the Redeemer), and Surb Hakob (St. Jacob) Katoghike hospital belong to the Armenian community in Istanbul. Three dailies are released – ‘Agos’, published since 2000, with 24 pages (four pages are in Armenian, and 20 pages – in Turkish; 5,000-6,000 print run); 102-year-old ‘Zhamanak’ (Time) (2,000 print run); and ‘Marmara’, published since 1940 (1,500 print run).

    The only Armenian ‘Aras’ printing and publishing house in Turkey is also in Istanbul.

    Artashes Markosian, editor of the printing and publishing house says that the objective of ‘Aras’ is to preserve the cultural heritage of Armenians living in Turkey for future generations. It has published 120 titles so far, one third of which are in Armenian. There are also books about the Armenian Genocide among them, which are not sold at bookstores in Istanbul. As for Yerevan, books published by ‘Aras’ are sold at ArtBridge Bookstore Cafe.

    The Armenian community in Istanbul has five high and 14 elementary schools, where 3,000 children study, however, their number in the community reaches 12,000. The rest of the children attend Turkish schools, which unlike Armenian schools, are free of charge.

    Getronagan High School, founded in 1886, is one of the Istanbul-based Armenians high schools. The high school, which has about 230 students studying in the 9-12 grades, has 50-60 alumni each year; only baptized Armenians study here.

    “At the entrance of the preparatory [of the school], you must prove that you are an Armenian, and the only proof here is being baptized,” says Sirvard Kuyumjian, head of Getronagan High School.

    The deputy head of the school is a Turk, which is compulsory for an Armenian school and other schools belonging to national minorities. It is forbidden to speak about the Armenian genocide at history classes.

    Teachers of the Armenian literature try to fill that gap, briefly touching upon what happened in 1915.

    The high school needs specialists and textbooks. They use 50-60-year-old textbooks.

    Teacher of the Armenian language Natalie Baghdad says that all those who have graduated from an Armenian school in Turkey do not have the right to hold high posts. But they become good linguists, lawyers, doctors or teachers.

    The life of Istanbul-based Armenians was essentially changed after death of Hrant Dink, editor-in-chief of ‘Agos’ daily, who was murdered on January 19, 2007, by Turk nationalist Ogun Samast just in front of ‘Agos’ office.

    “The appearance of hidden Armenians incredibly ran up. They came and said that Hrant had been killed for being an Armenian. “We are also Armenians; let them kill us, too,” they said,” Estukian recalls.

    Employees of ‘Agos’ editorial house say that they have no forbidden theme in their daily. Yet when Dink was alive they used the word “genocide” and paid an extremely high price for it. Now all the more, they have no reason not to use it.

    “Our daily always tried to speak about genocide through telling about it, through presenting the historical fact, because today’s Turkish people do not know what the Genocide is, it’s a closed topic here,” Estukian says.

    Since the 1990s Dink had tried to break through the limitations of the closed topic.

    “It was important to us to make sure that Turkish people know about it. The position of the government [of Turkey] would hardly change, if people do not change. If people change, the government would also change after a few generations. This is a great struggle,” Estukian says.

    Istanbul-based Kurd lawmaker Ufuk Uras has entered the Turkish parliament with the help of the vote of national minorities. Last year he visited Armenia with President of Turkey Abdullah Gul.

    The Kurd lawmaker joined the signature collection campaign of Turk members of intelligentsia, where they apologize to Armenians for the genocide.

    “Turkey has not been cleansed of massacres’ blood yet. We and Armenians have many things in common. There is no need to look for historical events in the diplomatic labyrinth. I appreciate this signature collection even more than whether or not U.S. President Barack Obama will pronounce the word genocide on April 24,” Uras says.

  • Istanbul Armenians appealed to Erdogan to elect a new patriarch

    Istanbul Armenians appealed to Erdogan to elect a new patriarch

    40148Istanbul Armenians collected 5, 359 signatures to oppose Turkish Government’s decision appointing a patriarch vicar replacing current Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mesrob Mutafyan.

    The initiative group “We want to elect our own patriarch” organized a press conference, saying they want to elect a religious leader who will represent Armenian community, Turkish Haberler reports.

    The group stressed there are no conflicts within the local Armenian community on the matter and they have no problems with the Turkish government’s decision to appoint Aram Ateshyan a patriarch vicar.

    The group of Istanbul Armenians claimed their right to elect a patriarch was violated and they collected 5,359 signatures to appeal to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to restore it.

    Famous Istanbul Armenians Harut Ozer, Tigran Altun, Markar Esayan, Karo Palyan and others met with the reporters.

    As NEWS.am reported previously, Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mersrob Mutafyan is permanently ill. He was elected patriarch for life in 1998 by the Armenian community. One group within the Armenian community considers they should elect a new patriarch, whereas another group, objects to this, saying it is against traditions to elect a new patriarch while the elected one is still alive.

    via Istanbul Armenians appealed to Erdogan to elect a new patriarch | Armenia News – NEWS.am.

  • Turkish Armenians sue Turkey over belated patriarch election

    Turkish Armenians sue Turkey over belated patriarch election

    VERCİHAN ZİFLİOĞLU

    ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

    Civilian representatives of the Armenian community have formed an initiative to lobby for their right to select their own patriarch. DAILY NEWS photo, Hasan ALTINIŞIK
    Civilian representatives of the Armenian community have formed an initiative to lobby for their right to select their own patriarch. DAILY NEWS photo, Hasan ALTINIŞIK

    Civilian representatives of the Armenian community have formed an initiative to lobby for their right to select their own patriarch. DAILY NEWS photo, Hasan ALTINIŞIK

    The Turkish Armenian community has filled two lawsuits against the Turkish government, including one to get permission to go ahead with a long-delayed election to select their own new patriarch.

    “A committee composed of civilian representatives from the community filed two lawsuits,” the community’s attorney Sebuh Aslangil told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review. “The first one is to make the government allow an election for a patriarch to take place, and the second is for canceling the substitute patriarch’s post.”

    Aslangil told the Daily News that such a post does not exist in the rules of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

    Civilian representatives of the community, who have formed an initiative to lobby for their rights to select their own patriarch, meanwhile held a meeting Wednesday in Istanbul. The initiative previously organized a petition campaign that gathered 6,000 signatures from Armenians in Istanbul demanding that the election be allowed to take place.

    Previous patriarch Mesrop II stepped down due to dementia. After his resignation, the Armenian community applied to the Interior Ministry; the first was made by the patriarchate’s spiritual committee to elect a co-patriarch and the second was made by the civilian committee to elect a new patriarch.

    Speaking to the Daily News, initiative spokesman Garo Paylan said the fact that there were two applications posed a problem, but that this should “not get the Interior Ministry off the hook for what they have done.”

    He said the ministry invented the post of “substitute patriarch” in order to see the person they wanted installed in the patriarch’s place. “The Turkish state needs to give the Armenian community what they are entitled to and should not impede the election process,” Paylan said. “It is our most deserved right to be able to elect our patriarch. In no time in history has the Armenian Patriarchate in Istanbul been persecuted to this extent.”

    Secret meeting at the palace

    In November, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a secret meeting with Archbishop Aram Ateşyan and a few prominent businessmen from the Armenian community. The participants made no statement about what was discussed at the meeting.

    In subsequent months, Ateşyan was assigned as substitute patriarch through the intervention of the Interior Ministry.

    According to Paylan, some prominent people from the community had an interesting meeting with Interior Minister Beşir Atalay last week. “Atalay told us he was given information by Ateşyan concerning the election procedure,” the spokesman said. “We do not know what is happening behind closed doors, but we know there is a post that has been left unfilled for three years and that is the post of the community’s spiritual leader.”

    Paylan said the election must take place as soon as possible and that it does not matter whether it selects a co-patriarch or a new patriarch.

    “Ateşyan imitates the Turkish government’s official discourse wherever he goes and says we have no problems with the Turkish state,” he said. “We want someone who is not afraid to speak his mind and who could represent our community in a way that is true to reality.”