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  CAMPAIGN FOR THE RECOGNITION OF HOCALI MASSACRE: WE CALL ON PARTICIPATING TO THE CAMPAIGN FOR THE RECOGNITION OF                         HOCALI MASSACRE.....                                                The massacre was committed people in Hocalı town in Azerbaijan on                         February 25-26, 1992 by Armenian was condemned and commemorated by                         various events in Azerbaijan and all of settlements in which Turks                         live.                        Hocalı town was a settlement in which the gravest massacre in the                         20'th century was committed and before 1992 it located in a region                         called Karabagh of Azerbaijan in which an Azerian population of                         nearly 7.000 had lived. The town was strategically important                         geographic area since the only airline of Karabagh region is in                         the town and railways passed through this town. Acara Turks who                         were forced to immigrate from Fergani and Azerbaijan Turks who                         were displaced by force from Armenia, settled in Hocalı as time                         passes. Hocalı was granted as Rayon, that is, "Special                         Administrative Region" with an order of Muttalibos, then the                         President of Azerbaijan on January 28, 1992.                        Unfortunately, on February 25, 1992 it was organized "an overnight                         raid" in Hocalı by Armenian forces armed by heavy weapons                         supported by 366'th Russian Motorized Regiment in Hankendi and                         1600 Azerbaijan Turks were killed bloodthirstily. While hundreds                         of people were killed without taking into consideration whether                         these people are young or old, women or men, or children or                         disable, it was committed torture which has not been seen in                         history before. Hocalı, an Azerbaijan town had been erased in the                         earth to be placed in dark and dusty pages of history with "Hocalı                         genocide" which is one of the collective terror cases committed                         against humanity.                        Brutality and genocide in Hocalı was committed in order to be                         cleansed Azerbaijan Turks from Nogorno Karabagh which has been                         determined as new target by Armenian together with Armenian                         Diaspora within the ideal of "Great Armenia" since 1987.                         With this massacre which was committed by adding historical enmity                         against Turks to Armenian desire of "expanding territorially", the                         gravest brutality and genocide of the century had been committed                         in Hocalı. Hocalı massacre was an indefinable crime against                         humanity which was committed not only against Azerian people, but                         also against all of peoples.                         Hocalı tragedy is not fortuitous event, on the contrary, it was                         the result of planned and determined genocide and ethnic cleansing                         policy which has been committed against Azerian people by Armenian                         for the last 200 years. This unavoidable insidious policy has been                         continued for years with every kind of support and provocation of                         Armenian Diaspora and lobby.                         Armenian often has not avoided to commit crimes against humanity                         such as terror, massacre, ethnic cleansing in order to reach their                         goals. Documents about the fact that millions of Azerian who were                         exposed ethnic cleansing and genocide policies in their own                         country, was killed, a number of people including pregnant women                         were exposed torture and these people had been forced to immigrate                         from their motherlands have clearly and firmly witnessed for the                         history.                        Unfortunately, while the gravest tragedy of history and of                         humanity was committed in Hocalı and furthermore there were                         documents and video tapes which are regarded as evidences of                         murder which was committed against innocent people, the world                         public opinion could not be informed sufficiently about this                         tragedy and it has not been achieved any concrete result about                         this tragedy for years, and finally, it has been understood that                         it could not be taken any required measures in order that Hocalı                         massacre is to be recognized as a genocide by foreign states and                         international organizations.                        "Hocalı massacre". No matter whatever its name is, whatever it is                         called and whoever it was committed against and in what                         conditions, there is a brutality in which serious events took                         place. Although it is a fact, it is really upsetting and                         meaningful that this inhuman event was condemned and commemorated                         only by Azerian and Turks. On the other hand, it is more upsetting                         and more meaningful that the world public opinion has still not                         been informed sufficiently about this massacre although it has                         passed for 13 years.                         For this reason, regarding Hocalı massacre, the brutality of 20'th                         century; the states, international organizations and various                         organizations such as human rights organizations and civil society                         organizations should be more informed insistently by documents                         which are considered as evidences, it should be managed to be                         brought this issue to various international platforms and to be                         discussed this issue in various parliaments. It should be                         demonstrated the occupying and aggressive nature of Armenia to the                         world public opinion, it should also be asked repeatedly Armenian                         to withdraw from Azerian territory in which they had occupied.                         Therefore we called every group and everybody, who are respectful,                         sensible for human rights, on participating to the CAMPAIGNE,                         which we believe to be launched for the recognition of Hocalı                         massacre by the world public opinion, in the name of humanity.                       
 AHISKA TURKS WİLL RETURN TO THEIR HOMELAND
  For Ahiska Turks who expelled from their homeland, a new hope emerged. Giorgi Haindrava, Georgian State Minister in charge of breakaway regions stated that they will provide an opportunity of the gradual return for Ahiska Turks who expelled from their homeland during Soviet Union.

During his visit to Javakheti where Armenian population constitutes a majority, Haindrava said that Ahiska Turks were subjected to a forced immigration in 1944 and works over their return process are continuing. “All legal rights of Ahiskans like all ethnical minorities in Georgia will be under protection” he said.

Before Georgia is accepted to the Council of Europe as a full member, among other things, it must give an opportunity for Ahiska Turks to return to their homeland.

Ahiska Turks, coming from Anatolia were forced to settle in the region between 1578 and the Russian invasion in 1828. The essential homelands of Ahiska Turks are regarded as the provinces of Ahiska, Ahılkelek, Aspinza, Adıgen and Bogdanovka that are within the lands of the Republic of Georgia and the neighbors of Turkey. The reason for the classification of the Turks that settled in these regions as Ahiska Turks is that the geographical name of the region that included these provinces was Ahiska.

Ahiska Turks was a Turkish group that was exiled for 3 times in the recent 70 years who incurred the wrath of Stalin, the bloody dictator in the year of 1944 and was subjected to exile again. Ahiska Turks expanded to various regions of the USSR in this bloody exile. Today, Ahiska Turks live in 264 different regions of 13 Republics. 70 thousands in 28 centers of population in Russian Federation, 145 thousands in Kazakhstan, 106 thousands in Azerbaijan, 57 thousands in Kyrgyzstan, 30 thousands in Uzbekistan, 18 thousands in Ukraine, 200 thousands in Turkey, and 3000 Ahiska Turks in various countries. There are totally 629 thousands of Ahiska Turks.

The reason why Ahiska Turks were subjected to exile was kept as confidential information for exactly 47 years. The subject was revealed upon the publication of the major documents that were related with the exiles in the year of 1991. Lavrentiy Beriya of Georgian roots, Superintendent of the Public Internal Affairs of the USSR sent a letter of proposal to Georgian İ.V. Stalin, the President of the State Defense Committee who was equipped with all authorities due to the state of war. In his letter (24th July 1944), he stated that “most of the Turkish nation that reside in the regions of Georgia SSR on the border of Turkey have an inclination of immigration upon their relations with their relatives on the side of Turkey. They are smugglers and they are engaged as spies for the Turkish intelligence bodies and they constitute manpower for the brigands”. Due to this statement, he proposed that 16700 families (with a population of 86.000-91.000) could be exiled from Ahiska region towards the Central Asia. Instead of these people, he also proposed the settlement of 7000 Georgian families from the districts that suffered lack of sufficient land in Georgia. After one week pursuant to this letter, the “exile” activities were initiated upon the Resolution of State Defense Committee that was signed by Stalin.

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