Armenian quest for lost orphans
Monday, 1 August 2005, 16:00 GMT 17:00 UK
Masterpiece, BBC World Service
By Dorian Jones Producer
(Masterpiece: The Little Girl Who Came In From The Cold can first be heard on BBC World Service at 0805GMT/0905BST on Tuesday 2 August 2005 or online at the Masterpiece website for the following 7 days. )
Ninety years ago, hundreds of thousands of Armenians died in mass killings that still resonate through Turkey's social and political life.
[...]
But it is believed that thousands of orphaned Armenian children were saved secretly by Turkish families.
[...]
[...] the stories of those Armenian orphans are slowly being uncovered by their descendants. Turkish documentary maker Berke Bas is one of those people.
Family member Nahide Kaptan was saved in 1915 when she was nine years old. But uncovering the truth still remains a difficult and contentious issue.
Selim Deringil, a historian of the late Ottoman period at Istanbul's Bosphorus University, says "what you have is people talking at cross purposes and not really interested in what happened."
[...]
The ongoing controversy can pose problems for those delving into the past.
Berke Bas, on returning to her birthplace - the Black Sea city of Ordu - admitted she had concerns.
"I am sure there will be people who will approach this with disdain, saying 'Why am I digging up this history?' So many families deny the fact they had Armenian family members."
According to Professor Deringil, such stories are not unusual. He says thousands of Armenian children were saved by Turkish families.
"We do know that it was on such a scale that the then rulers of the Ottoman Empire issued secret orders to punish families who saved Armenian children."
[...]
After speaking with relatives, Berke discovered that at least five Armenian children were taken in by both sides of her family.
But acknowledging Armenian ancestors within Turkish families still remains a taboo for many, according to the editor of the local newspaper. "These children were brought up in Muslim families. This is the biggest issue, Christians becoming Muslims," he said.
[...]
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Masterpiece, BBC World Service
By Dorian Jones Producer
(Masterpiece: The Little Girl Who Came In From The Cold can first be heard on BBC World Service at 0805GMT/0905BST on Tuesday 2 August 2005 or online at the Masterpiece website for the following 7 days. )
Ninety years ago, hundreds of thousands of Armenians died in mass killings that still resonate through Turkey's social and political life.
[...]
But it is believed that thousands of orphaned Armenian children were saved secretly by Turkish families.
[...]
[...] the stories of those Armenian orphans are slowly being uncovered by their descendants. Turkish documentary maker Berke Bas is one of those people.
Family member Nahide Kaptan was saved in 1915 when she was nine years old. But uncovering the truth still remains a difficult and contentious issue.
Selim Deringil, a historian of the late Ottoman period at Istanbul's Bosphorus University, says "what you have is people talking at cross purposes and not really interested in what happened."
[...]
The ongoing controversy can pose problems for those delving into the past.
Berke Bas, on returning to her birthplace - the Black Sea city of Ordu - admitted she had concerns.
"I am sure there will be people who will approach this with disdain, saying 'Why am I digging up this history?' So many families deny the fact they had Armenian family members."
According to Professor Deringil, such stories are not unusual. He says thousands of Armenian children were saved by Turkish families.
"We do know that it was on such a scale that the then rulers of the Ottoman Empire issued secret orders to punish families who saved Armenian children."
[...]
After speaking with relatives, Berke discovered that at least five Armenian children were taken in by both sides of her family.
But acknowledging Armenian ancestors within Turkish families still remains a taboo for many, according to the editor of the local newspaper. "These children were brought up in Muslim families. This is the biggest issue, Christians becoming Muslims," he said.
[...]
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
posted by Vahe Balabanian at 6:42 AM
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