Re: The Dersim Genocide 1938
PM Erdoğan apologizes over Dersim massacre on behalf of Turkish state
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has apologized for a 1937 massacre in the predominantly Alevi region of Dersim on behalf of the Turkish state, but said the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), which was the only political party at the time, is the actual culprit and called on the party's current leader to apologize for the incident on behalf of the CHP.
Is it me who should apologize or you [CHP leader Kemal Kılıēdaroğlu]? If there is an apology on behalf of the state and if there is such an opportunity, I can do it and I am apologizing. But if there is someone who should apologize on behalf of the CHP, it is you, as you are from Dersim. You were saying you felt honored to be from Dersim. Now, save your honor, Erdoğan said during a party meeting on Wednesday.
It was the first official apology from the Turkish government over the killing of thousands of people in the southeastern town of Dersim -- now known as Tunceli as a result of a name change in 1936 -- between 1936 and 1939.
Erdoğan was responding to Kılıēdaroğlu's demands that Turkey must face its past. Kılıēdaroğlu's family is from Tunceli. The notorious massacre took place in 1937 in Dersim, which was historically a semi-autonomous region, as a brutal response to rebellious events. The alleged rebellion was led by Seyyid Rıza, the chief of a Zaza tribe in the region. The Turkish government at the time, led by former CHP leader İsmet İnönü, responded with air strikes and other violent methods of suppression, killing thousands of people.
Dersim is among the most tragic event in recent history. It is a disaster that should now be questioned with courage. The party that should confront this incident is not the ruling Justice and Development Party [AK Party]. It is the CHP, which is behind this bloody disaster, who should face this incident and its chairman from Tunceli, Erdoğan said, targeting Kılıēdaroğlu. The two politicians recently clashed over the long-controversial massacre.
Source : http://www.todayszaman.com/news-2636...ish-state.html
Erdogan's speech/Videos (Turkish) : http://video.haberturk.com/haber/vid...liyorum-/55993
PM Erdoğan apologizes over Dersim massacre on behalf of Turkish state
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has apologized for a 1937 massacre in the predominantly Alevi region of Dersim on behalf of the Turkish state, but said the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), which was the only political party at the time, is the actual culprit and called on the party's current leader to apologize for the incident on behalf of the CHP.
Is it me who should apologize or you [CHP leader Kemal Kılıēdaroğlu]? If there is an apology on behalf of the state and if there is such an opportunity, I can do it and I am apologizing. But if there is someone who should apologize on behalf of the CHP, it is you, as you are from Dersim. You were saying you felt honored to be from Dersim. Now, save your honor, Erdoğan said during a party meeting on Wednesday.
It was the first official apology from the Turkish government over the killing of thousands of people in the southeastern town of Dersim -- now known as Tunceli as a result of a name change in 1936 -- between 1936 and 1939.
Erdoğan was responding to Kılıēdaroğlu's demands that Turkey must face its past. Kılıēdaroğlu's family is from Tunceli. The notorious massacre took place in 1937 in Dersim, which was historically a semi-autonomous region, as a brutal response to rebellious events. The alleged rebellion was led by Seyyid Rıza, the chief of a Zaza tribe in the region. The Turkish government at the time, led by former CHP leader İsmet İnönü, responded with air strikes and other violent methods of suppression, killing thousands of people.
Dersim is among the most tragic event in recent history. It is a disaster that should now be questioned with courage. The party that should confront this incident is not the ruling Justice and Development Party [AK Party]. It is the CHP, which is behind this bloody disaster, who should face this incident and its chairman from Tunceli, Erdoğan said, targeting Kılıēdaroğlu. The two politicians recently clashed over the long-controversial massacre.
Source : http://www.todayszaman.com/news-2636...ish-state.html
Erdogan's speech/Videos (Turkish) : http://video.haberturk.com/haber/vid...liyorum-/55993
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