Global Voices » Turkey

Turkey: Poetic Commemoration of Uludere Airstrike Victims

Stratos Moraitis — Mon, 21 May 2012 12:59:33 +0000

On December 29, 2011 in southeastern Turkey several Turkish Airforce F-16s bombed a convoy of Turkish Kurds on mules who were engaged in border trade, apparently mistaking them for Kurdish rebels. Thirty-four were killed; the average age of the victims was twenty.

While the Uludere (Roboski) bombing is still in the news headlines today, interest has been focused on the government's silence and the ongoing investigation, and the human side of the tragedy has been neglected.

However, last week poet and author Bejan Matur visited the region and posted her impressions on her Twitter account [tr], in both her poetic prose and photos.

A mother at her son's grave.

@bejanmatur: bugün geldim roboskiye ve gidemedim. yaslı kızkardeşlerin sesleri bırakmadı beni…

I arrived at Roboski today and couldn't leave. The voices of mourning sisters didn't let me.

@bejanmatur: roboskide gece;sınıra düşen top sesleri, F-16 ucusşları ve bütün gün mezarlıkta ağıt yakan kadınların anlattığı ölü oğullar. ahh yeter mi?

Night in Roboski: shelling on the border, the sounds of F-16 flights, and fallen sons about whom mothers ululate all day long at the cemetery. Ah, is that enough?

At her brother's grave.

@bejanmatur: o kadar uzaktık birbirimizden. o kadar yalnız kendimizle…

We were so far away from each other… However in solitude with ourselves…

@bejanmatur: Tum bunlar olurken butun gece ve gun roboskide top sesleri dinmedi. helikopterler, karsi tepelerden yukselen dumanlar arasinda yasanan hayat

As these events were happening, all day and all night shelling sounds never ceased at Roboski. A life between ever-flying helicopters and smoke from the shells on the mountain across.

His look…

@bejanmatur: 'Aile ici siddet nasil korkuncsa bizim cocuklarimiz da bu seslerle buyuyor' diyor biri roboskideki top seslerini kastederek.

Someone said, “These sounds have the same effect on children as an abusive family.” He meant the sound of heavy artillery.

@bejanmatur: Olumden duyduklari aciyi azaltacak tek sey sorumlularin cezalandirilmasi cunku!

The only thing that would ease their pain would be the conviction of those responsible!

To live and to die at Roboski.

As one of Bejan's poems says:

Beklemeyi bilen kan,
Taş olmayı da bilir.
Dünyada olmak acıdır. Öğrendim.

Blood that knows how to wait
Knows how to be a stone.
Being on earth is pain itself. I've learned.

Bejan Matur was born in 1968 in an Alevi Kurdish family in the city of Marash in southeast Turkey. As well as being a poet she is a newspaper columnist and runs a cultural foundation in Diyarbakır.

All photos courtesy of Bejan Matur.

Turkey: Outrage at Sentencing of Scarf Case Student

Stratos Moraitis — Fri, 11 May 2012 22:02:46 +0000

On May 11 Cihan Kirmizigul, an engineering student at the prestigious Galatasaray University in Istanbul, was sentenced to 11 years and 3 months in jail for firebombing a building - but many believe his only “crime” was wearing a Kurdish scarf in the vicinity of the attack.

The number of imprisoned Turkish journalists and politicians has doubled in the last few years, prompting strong reactions both locally and internationally. Kirmizigul's sentencing on May 11 was just the latest in a series of controversial cases. He was sentenced to 11 years and 3 months on charges of membership in the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), possession of explosives and causing damage to private buildings. However, in what has become known as the “scarf case”, it is widely believed that Kirmizigul just happened to be in the area wearing a Kurdish poşu (keffiyeh or scarf).

On Twitter, reactions were immediate. Fatih Aker commented on the lack of evidence [tr]:

@mesutbahtiyar: kaçıranlar için #cihankirmizigul davası özeti: -soru:molotof kokteyli atan kişi bu muydu? -tanık:hayır değildi. (delil:poşu karar:11 sene)

for all those who missed the case, an executive summary. - question: was he the one who threw the Molotov cocktail? - witness: no he wasn't. (evidence: keffiyeh. sentence: 11 years.)

The Turkish judicial system has for some time been under the scrutiny of social media activists because of unfair court decisions. While a special “terror law” (separate from the usual criminal law) is terrorizing political dissidents, rapists and abusers are evading heavy punishment under the regular law.

Melis Tasan looks at the reason Kirmizigul was singled out by the police, which was the scarf he was wearing [tr]:

@melistasan: tecavüzü meşrulaştıran, katilleri kahraman ilan eden, hırsızları büyük iş adamı yapan hükumet poşuya dur dedi

the government that legalized rape, proclaimed murderers to be heroes and thieves to be big businessmen, declared “no to keffiyehs!”

Actor and movie director Ahmet Mumtaz Taylan tweeted [tr]:

@taylan1789: Poşu takarak Beyoğlu'nda yürümek suretiyle devleti yıkmaya kalkışan Cihan KIRMIZIGÜL'e 11 yıl ceza veren adalet; Dümen senin kolpa senin!

The justice system that punished Cihan Kirmizigul with a sentence of 11 years for trying to destroy the state by walking at Beyoglu wearing a keffiyeh: you are the ones running the show!

Demonstrators occupying Beyoglu in protest at Kirmizigul sentencing, May 11, 2012. Photo courtesy of Elif Ilgaz (@elifilgaz)

After his arrest, Kirmizigul's friends and professors started a blog [tr] to make his case known:

Galatasaray Üniversitesi Endüstri Mühendisliği Bölümü öğrencisi Cihan Kırmızıgül, 22 aydır Tekirdağ F Tipi Cezaevi’nde tutuklu bulunmaktadır. Bir süpermarkete yönelik gerçekleştirilen Molotof kokteylli bir saldırıdan iki saat sonra, olay yerine yakın Kağıthane’de otobüs beklerken, saldırıya katılmış olduğuna dair hiçbir somut delil bulunmaksızın, zor kullanılarak gözaltına alınmıştır. O gün boynunda taşıdığı ve polis tarafından Kürt hareketiyle özdeşleştirilen “poşu”, gözaltına alınması için öne sürülen tek suç unsurudur. Bir gizli tanık tarafından “giysilerinden” teşhis edilmiş, fakat bu tanık, daha sonra ifadesini geri çekmiştir. Suç delillerinin zayıflığına işaret eden savcı, Kırmızıgül’ün beraatini istedikten sonra görevden alınmıştır.

Galatasaray University industrial engineering student Cihan Kirmizigul has been in detention for 22 months (since February 20, 2010) at Tekirdag F-Type Prison. Two hours after a Molotov attack at a supermarket in the Kagithane neighborhood (in Istanbul), he was forcefully arrested while waiting for a bus at a bus stop although there was no evidence for his involvement in the incident. The keffiyeh he was wearing that day, which is identified as a sign of the Kurdish movement by the police, is the sole reason and evidence for his arrest. He was then identified by a secret witness by his clothing, but that witness later retracted his statement. The initial prosecutor of the case who accepted that the evidence against Kirmizigul was weak was removed from his office after stating that.

While most wrote in support of Kirmizigul, some defended the state's stance. Hasan Ceylan tweeted [tr]:

@Hasan_133: #CihanKirmizigul ne poşu davası lan örgüte yataklık etmek molotof atmak patlayıcı bulundurmak çarpıtmayın pkklı piçler…

The Cihan Kirmizigul case is not about the keffiyeh, it's about abetting and using Molotovs and explosives. Do not twist things, you PKK bastards…

Some took the case as a matter of reciprocity. Twitter user a.l.g. wrote [tr]:

@friendsinhell: TÜRK vatandaşı bir ÇERKES arkadaşım KÜRDİSTAN'da PUŞİ takmadığı için sınır dışı edilmişti:/ süreç şu anda AİHM'e intikal etti.

A friend of mine with Circassian origins and Turkish nationality was extradited from Kurdistan for not wearing a keffiyeh. The case is in European Human Rights Court now.

Demonstrators wearing keffiyeh and demanding justice. Photo courtesy of Elif Ilgaz (@elifilgaz)

Kirmizigul's quest for justice has been taken up by others. His professors at university started “Öğrencime Dokunma Kampanyası” [tr] (Don't Mess With Our Students campaign) under the leadership of Mehmet Karlı, research fellow at Galatasaray University. They have organized meetings and issued press statements throughout the trial. Upon the issuing of the court decision, the group immediately gathered at the courthouse where Mehmet Karlı criticized the proceedings [tr]:

Bizimle dalga geçiyorlar. Bizimle oyun oynuyorlar. Daha önce Cihan serbest bırakılmıştı, biz umutlandık. Dedik ki ’Galiba hakikat görünüyor’ ama bu umut malesef bir taktiğin parçasıymış. Bizim bu işin peşini bırakacağımız zannedildi. Biz mücadeleyi bırakmadık buradayız. O dosyada Cihan’ı suçlayacak bir delil bile yok. Bir tek satır dahi yok. 22 yaşında genç bir çocuğun hayatıyla oynuyorlar.

They make fun of us. They play games with us. Cihan was previously released pending trial, and we were hopeful. We said maybe they'd started to see the facts, but that hope unfortunately was part of a bigger plan. They thought we would let the issue go. We will continue our fight for justice, we are here. There is not one single piece of evidence against Cihan in the case file. There is not one single line against him. They are messing with the life of a young 22-year-old man.

The supporters of jailed students gathered in Taksim Square in Istanbul on the evening of May 11, to protest injustice against political prisoners.

May Day Videos: Marches, Demonstrations and Protests Around The World

Juliana Rincón Parra — Tue, 08 May 2012 05:08:19 +0000

Through cities around the globe, people took to the streets to march and commemorate the International Workers' Day. Videos by The Real News take us on a tour of how the day was observed throughout the world.

May Day March in Venezuela

While some places saw peaceful marches, others had violent encounters between armed forces and the protesters. On the first part of the video, an overview of workers in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe. For example, Malaysian activists protested against the growing inequality. In the Philippines were for job security and higher wages. Indonesians protested low wages and rough conditions. Cambodians asked for higher wages. People in Bahrein asked for workers to be reinstated to their positions of which they were removed by the government crackdowns. In Egypt protests were on behalf of including workers rights in the constitution that is being drafted. In Europe, workers protested austerity measures that seem to target them. In Russia, both the ruling party and the opposition had their own rallies. The French left marched against the past of fiscal austerity. And in the London, where May Day is not a holiday, workers went on strike.

On the second part, protests in North and South America. Demonstrations throughout Canada protesting budget cuts and rises in college tuition. In the USA, banks were targeted in many major cities including clashes with riot police, calls to strikes, and blockades. In Mexico workers marched to ask the government to do a better job in the face of violence. Honduras saw protests against the privatization of public services as well as corruption. In Cuba, massive parades commemorated the Cuban Revolution and in Venezuela both the government supporters and opposition marched, either for or against the recent reforms. In Colombia there were arrests during the protests and the Chilean student movement also marched.

Armenia: Art, Genocide, Westernization and Identity

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 17:24:23 +0000

Writing on Hyperallergic, Hrag Vartanian explains how he marked the 97th anniversary of the massacre and deportation of 1.5 million Armenians in the Ottoman Empire. The writer and art critic/curator took his mother to an exhibition of Armenian art exploring art, westernization and ethnic identity in the post-Genocide world.

Armenia: Does the world need to recognize the Armenian Genocide?

Onnik Krikorian — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 12:43:24 +0000

Following this week's 97th anniversary of the 1915 massacre and deportation of Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire, vgratian asks its readers “Does the world need to recognize the Armenian Genocide?”

Turkey: Armenian Genocide Commemoration in Istanbul

Onnik Krikorian — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 21:38:02 +0000

April 24, 2012, marks the 97th anniversary of the massacre and deportation of around 1.5 million Armenians living in the then Ottoman Empire. Widely considered by many historians as well as the parliaments of several countries to be an act of genocide, the issue remains an emotive one.

Yet, while recent attempts to officially normalize relations and resolve historical grievances between Armenia and Turkey have faltered, the situation has been changing slowly in other areas, and not least in terms of civil society activity.

Indeed, in recent years there has been more open discussion and debate in Turkish society, as well as in its media, about the events of 1915 than ever before. While Turkey still denies the charge of genocide, that change is nonetheless unprecedented as one Turkish tweep commented.

@Ziya_Meral: How much #Turkey has changed in 10 years.. Newspapers are full of articles clearly naming 1915 a genocide, people marching to commemorate..

Naturally, most activity, online and off, came from ethnic Armenians in Armenia and its large Diaspora, much of which came into being because of the deportations, but while the memorial in Istanbul was small, it was at least poignant. It was also live-tweeted in Turkish and English.

@oemoral: @cigdemmater & @hale_akay reporting live from Armenian Genocide commemoration meeting in #Istanbul.

@cigdemmater: 1915 genocide is a crime against humanity #ArmenianGenocide http://pic.twitter.com/E58KFq9O

@hale_akay: We gathered in front of the building Armenians were kept before they were forced to leave Istanbul #ArmenianGenocide http://pic.twitter.com/zFwxKWac

@cigdemmater: Today's museum of Turkish and Islamic art use to be the central prison during the #ArmenianGenocide

A statement from the Turkish Human Rights Association (IHD) was also addressed to the heads of the two Armenian Churches in Armenia and Lebanon. British-Armenian Genocide Historian Ara Sarafian also spoke at the commemoration.

@cigdemmater: IHD aciklamasindan sonra tarihci Ara Sarafian,Ermenice bir konusma yapiyor:soykirimin 97.yilini anmak icin bir aradayiz http://pic.twitter.com/ZkEmATyJ

Historian Ara Sarafian is speaking Armenian after IHD's (Human Rights Association) statement: We are all here to commemorate the 97th year of genocide.

A larger memorial occurred later in the day in Istanbul's Taksim Square although there were reports of a counter demonstration by Turkish nationalists. Otherwise, the event was silent and peaceful.

Meanwhile, some Facebook and Twitter users also shared a video recorded especially to mark the anniversary, as Unzipped and others noted.

An Armenian folk song ('At the Break of Dawn', compiled by Arusyak Sahakian), arranged by Ayşe Tütüncü, well known pianist/musician from Turkey […], and performed by 42 Turkish musicians. In memoriam April 24.

@GizemYarbil: An Armenian folk song, Aravodun Temin: At the Break of Dawn, In memoriam #April24 http://vimeo.com/40639618

Bir anonim Ermeni gelin türküsünü (Aravodun Temin: Sabaha Karşı, derleyen: Arusyak Sahakyan) Ayşe Tütüncü düzenledi, 42 müzisyen biraraya gelip çaldı. 24 Nisan kurbanları anısına…

An Armenian folk song (Aravodun Temin: At the Break of Dawn, compiled by Arusyak Sahakian), arranged by Ayşe Tütüncü and performed by 42 musicians. In memoriam April 24.

Touched by the gesture, one Armenian left a comment:

Nora Armani: As the granddaughter of a survivor from Kaiseri, Anatolia, I am touched beyond words. All I can say is: çok teşekkür ederim, arkadaşlarim. Our culture and art will re-unite us. I am a firm believer in that. Thank you once again…

Thanks to Ertugrul Yilmaz (@Ert_Ylmz) for translation from Turkish into English and Ümit Kıvanç for enabling Vimeo embed permissions for the video.

Armenia: A Tale of Two Nations

Onnik Krikorian — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 10:15:36 +0000

Security, in the Caucasus and beyond…. comments on the 97th anniversary of the massacre and deportation of 1.5 million Armenians from the Ottoman Empire in 1915. Considered an act of genocide by many historians and countries, the blog explains why the events are still very much politically relevant to both Armenia and Turkey today.

Turkey: Riot Police Continue to Clash with Kurds Celebrating Newroz

Ruwayda Mustafah — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:19:36 +0000

Kurdish people are the largest ethnic group in Turkey, making up 20 per cent of the population, which is close to 20 million people. They have been subject to state-sanctioned discrimination and human rights violations. Today, in Yuksekova, which is a district in the Hakkari province of Turkey, Kurdish people were attacked for gathering to celebrate Newroz - the Kurdish new year.

One Kurdish politician, Ahmed Turk was hospitalised, and 32-year-old Alaattin Okan was hit with a tear-gas canister in Batman. Two prominent Kurdish websites were taken down earlier this morning, and have been unable to send updates regarding the clashes. In addition to this, mainstream news sites have been slow in covering this story, which is why Kurdish activists have used social networking sites to raise awareness.

Faruk Arhan, a journalist for Bianet tweeted a picture showing a Kurdish woman being attacked by Turkish riot police:

Yüksekova

Yekbun Alp tweeted that a Kurdish MP was arrested, amidst clashes between Turkish riot police and Kurds who wanted to celebrate Newroz:

@YekbunAlp: MP Özdal Ücer was a guest of a family in Cizre when police attacked the house and arrested the family.

Another Kurdish activist, tweeted this picture, showing Turkish riot police firing tear-gas and Kurdish youth responding with stones out of anger and frustration that they can't even celebrate the Kurdish new year without being attacked:

Photo: @quzzulqurt

Hawri Tofik from Sweden was among the hundreds of Kurdish activists angered by the Turkish government's brutality towards Kurds celebrating Newroz. She tweeted:

@iirwaH: Seriously, I don't understand.. Why is it a crime to celebrate Newroz? How many more Kurds gonna get injured/killed?

Jiyan Azadi tweeted this picture, saying tens of thousands gathered in Yuksekova, and later were attacked by riot police:

Picture tweeted by @jiyanazadi

Meanwhile, Meltem Ay from London tweeted:

@jin_jiyan_azadi: How foolish of Turkey! Dictatorship and oppressive methods will only unify the Kurdish people and make them stronger!

Alliance For Kurdish Rights has uploaded several pictures, showing Turkish riot police have used tear-gas and water canons to disperse protesters from the district of Yuksekova.

Turkey: Police Attack Kurds Celebrating Newroz

Ruwayda Mustafah — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 19:45:45 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Indigenous Rights.

Thousands of Kurds took to the streets in celebration of Newroz, in a pre-planned event, but were dispersed with water cannons, tear gas and kettled across Turkey today. Despite the brutality they faced in Diyar Bakir, Kurds continued to march towards the square where Newroz celebrations, which mark the first day of Spring, were to be held. In the past, they were not allowed to exert their Kurdish identity in public, but since the 1980s, Newroz has become a symbolic event in highlighting Kurdish culture, and identity.

Newroz is usually celebrated between March 18 and 21, but the official date for Newroz is March 21. During Newroz, Kurdish people dress up in traditional dresses, and partake in folklore dance. Unfortunately today, violence was escalated by the presence of Turkish riot police, and the barricading of entrances towards the Square.

Kurdish Women mark Newroz in the Turkish capital Ankara. Photo credit: Jiyan Azadi posted on Twitter

Yekbun Alp from Amed (Diyarbakir) tweeted:

@YekbunAlp: Turkish police have locked Amed and doesnt let anyone leave the city to celebrate Newroz.

In a poor attempt to disperse Kurds that were making their way to the Square to celebrate Newroz, unnecessary force was used by Turkish riot police. Alp explains:

@YekbunAlp: Turkish police is using teargas against the celebrators!!!

Violence continued, and led to the killing of one Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) executive in Istanbul. BDP co-chair Gültan Kışanak confirmed the death of Haci Zengin on her Twitter account.

Reuters reports on this incident:

Turkish police used water cannon, tear gas and baton charges to break up Kurdish demonstrations across the country on Sunday and one local politician died in the protests, a sign of rising tension ahead of the Kurdish New Year next week.

This post is part of our special coverage Indigenous Rights.

UK: #TwitterKurds Organize First Social Media Gathering in London

Nigar Hacizade — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:15:46 +0000

A group of Kurdish Internet activists that have been organizing around the #TwitterKurds hashtag on Twitter have come together for the first Kurdish Social Media Gathering earlier this month in London.

The event, which was followed through the #KSMG (Kurdish Social Media Gathering) tag, was live streamed and joined in via Skype and YouTube by those who could not be there physically, although there were participants who had traveled from as far as Australia to participate. It was held on January 21, 2012.

@xoshink: @TaraFatehi speaking at the #KSMG in London! She travelled all the way from Australia! #Bijî!#TwitterKurds

One of the organizers, @kurdishblogger, tweeted a photo of @TaraFatehi speaking to the participants:

@TaraFatehi is here from Australia to talk about Kurdish issues&Kurds in Australia #Twitterkurds#KSMG12 #Kurdistan pic.twitter.com/wVTqS0k3

A Kurdish Twitter user @TaraFatehi flew in from Australia to attend the KSMG in London. Photo shared by @kurdishblogger on Twitter

Others who were not physically there joined in the conversation with how they use the #TwitterKurds tag to communicate.

@xoshink: Social media connected me to amazing people around the globe; helped me find Kurds locally with ambitions to make a change.

@Vexhevxwaz: I totally agree with @apogeeculture1.#TwitterKurds inspired me to organize actions in my local Kurdish community.

Participants focused on social media strategies, Twitter in particular, to attract attention to a given news story, as well as carry out a campaign.

@Shakawan: Q: where do we go from here ? should trending kurdish issues be the top priority?

@B9AcE: Tactics should be chosen from a strategic goal. TT reaches mainly new mainstream. Directed campaigns a #TwitterKurds

@B9AcE: Need new, high impact topic. Send it to large noise makers, asking for it to be spread starting at same time.

@WRyaM: social media tools are also podcasts, Events, collective bookmarking wikis… so let us use them all

Organizers then showed a video sent from Diyarbakır, “sent to them for this gathering by Abdullah Demirbaş, who is the mayor of Sur Municipality in Diyarbakır.” The presenter also noted it was

“worth making a mention at this moment of a very important agency in Amed (Diyarbakır) called @AjansAmed - it's a new social media organization website, a group of social media activists who have put together these videos that you are seeing tonight. Abdullah Demirbaş was part of a campaign to get people tweeting. Every Thursday we were tweeting #abdullahdemirbas, because he has a medical condition he needs to leave America for but he can't travel, because he was taken to court and now he has a travel ban.”

Xende Biradostî tweets:

@Wekhevxwaz Thank you, #KSMG for raising awareness of the plight of #AbdullahDemirbas. #TwitterKurds

Image shared by Halkevi Media on Twitter of the event

One of the speakers was Mehmet, from Halkevi Media, in London. His presentation also included strategies to use social media towards what he saw was beneficial to the Kurdish communities:

This gathering to me is one of the most important events of 2012. I work for Halkevi, the social media part at @halkevimedia, so social media is very important to me. I think we have been lacking in the social media area for quite a while and our numbers are not maximized, there are more Kurds on the internet but they are using it more for their personal stuff, but (social media can also be used) to create awareness and consciousness of Kurdish issues and democratic struggle of Kurdish people and people in the region. I want to talk about the importance of social media in diplomacy - we need to increase the social media effect in diplomatic spheres. We need to determine the agenda rather than having our agenda formed by outside events, such as arrests, operations, etc. We need to have our agenda and initiate to lead rather than be led by political developments that constantly change. Also, we constantly tweet the same thing, it's not getting outside. We need to target certain individuals, for example Middle East correspondents of every single international media organization and MPs. Social media needs to be not separate from grassroots, there are 200,000 Kurds in this country, we needed to have more people here. We need to use different strategies to engage them.

Reactions to his presentation were quite positive:

@JowanM: ”We have to determine the news” rather than waiting for them. Well said by current speaker #KSMG #TwitterKurds

@apogeeculture1: Kurds from all over are coming together for the first time in history through social media.@halkevimedia #twitterkurds #ksmg #KurdishRights

Next, @quzzulqurt from Turkey joined in via Skype. He noted that “this (social media) is a big chance for us around the world to come together. Before there was only Roj TV but now we have this chance and must use it to create awareness, for non-Kurds and Kurds in the region.”

@Zurdosh: @Kurdishblogger has just asked @quzzulqurtabout reporting in English more in North Kurdistan (turkey) #TwitterKurds #KSMG

@PerwinBerdizi: #KSMG #TwitterKurds it is our job, we kurds who can speak ceveral language to translate to the diasporan people

Participants elaborated more on reaching out to professional journalists during breaking news events.

@kurdishblogger: in order to attract the attention of international media, it is extremely important to have a photo, video or witness who can testify. Say, a BBC journalist needs at least 2 witnesses. They don't have that much time, you have to help them. You need to have a photo and you need to give context. People post photos on facebook without any explanation, I am Kurdish and I might know but you can't expect an international journalist to know (what the context is).

@PerwinBerdizi: #KSMG #TwitterKurds unfortunately today's journalism is about copy+paste therefore, do half of their job and contribute with throughout news!

@B9AcE: @AbsoIuteBanana Nowadays activists must basically write journos articles with pictures & quotes for them. Complete work. #KSMG #TwitterKurds

Tweeps deemed the gathering an overall success, with many people asking if there will be similar events in the future.

@apogeeculture1: We have now had participants from all parts of Kurdistan and Australia, Japan, Turkey, Israel! Kurds go International! #ksmg #twitterkurds

@kurdishblogger: “Tweets are more powerful than bullets” Quote of the day at first Kurdish Social Media gathering#Twitterkurds who said this? #Kurdistan

Further reading:

More reactions are available on this Storify compilation by Nigar Hacizade.

Turkey: Post-Murder Trial, Thousands Remember Hrant Dink

Onnik Krikorian — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 10:46:41 +0000

Thousands have marched in Turkey to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist and Agos newspaper editor Hrant Dink. Angering Turkish nationalists with his outspoken position that the 1915 massacre and deportation of as many as 1.5 million ethnic Armenians as the Ottoman Empire collapsed constituted genocide, Dink was shot dead outside his office in Istanbul on 19 January 2007.

His killer, Ogun Samast, was sentenced last year, but the end this week of the trial of others involved continues to leave many questions relating to official involvement in the assassination unanswered. Writing on Critical Legal Thinking, Basak Ertür provides a comprehensive background to the case as well as the events leading up to Dink's death.

Hrant Dink’s murder was the culminating point of a persecution campaign that can be traced back to February 2004, when he published claims to the effect that Sabiha Gökçen, the adopted daughter of Atatürk and the first woman war pilot of the Turkish Republic, was of Armenian descent. Dink’s claim provoked a public statement from the Chief of Staff, the highest echelon of the Turkish army. A few days later he was summoned to the Istanbul Governor’s Office and “warned” by two people who were introduced to him as “friends” of the then Deputy Governor. Three and a half years after the assassination, the Intelligence Service admitted that these two people were its operatives.

[…]

[…] The deep state lurks menacingly behind the innumerable assassinations, disappearances, provocations, threats, disinformation campaigns, psychological operations and dirty deals of the past few decades. Though providing much fodder for what can be dismissed as conspiracy theorising, the very style and structure of deep state plots render them almost immediately recognisable to a public that has become all too familiar with them. Hrant Dink’s assassination was instantly widely recognised as one such plot.

Certain pieces of information that surfaced during the trial corroborated this view. One of the defendants testified that in his capacity as a police informant, he had repeatedly warned the security forces of the plan to assassinate Dink in the months leading to his death. Some documentary evidence supported the claim that the police was informed of the plan as early as eleven months before the assassination. Key defendants were remarkably smug during the hearings, occasionally signalling, though never disclosing their deeper connections.

[…]

This is what Fethiye Çetin, the lawyer representing the Dink family, meant when she spoke after the decision, referring to the case as a comedy: “They’ve been mocking us all along. And today, we saw that they saved the punch-line for the end.”

Nevertheless, if Dink was loathed by Turkish nationalists, he was also disliked by their counterparts in Armenia and its large Diaspora. Also calling for reconciliation and brotherhood between Armenians and Turks, it's therefore perhaps no wonder that most of those protesting the outcome of the trial as well as commemorating yesterday's anniversary were Turks, Kurds and Armenians living in Turkey.

@UtkuCakir: İnsanlık ölmemiş… Agos'un önünde görmüşler - Fotoğraf: Tolga Bozoğlu #kardesimsinhrant - Hrant Dink pic.twitter.com/ojlyXWoD

Humanity has not died… In front of Agos #you'remybrotherhrant

@BerxwedanYARUK: Ankara da Hrant Dink anması pic.twitter.com/KdA1Px1m

Hrant Dink commemoration in Ankara

Erkan Saka, a Turkish academic and blogger, posts some of the many updates and photos sent out on Twitter in Turkish. However, there were also updates, with some translation into English, from commemorative marches throughout Turkey.

@umitalan: Taksim'le Agos arasında müthiş bır kalabalık var. Devlete, yargıya ve tüm katillerine en ıyi cevap bu. Bu dava burada bitmeyecek.

There is a huge crowd between Taksim and Agos. This is the best answer to the state, prosecution and all criminals. This struggle will not end here.

@449981: CNNTurk 30 bin kişi oldugunu soyledi şimdi.yayını taksimden yapıyorlardı galiba,grubun en arkası gözüküyordu roportaj yaptıkları yerden.

CNNTurk just reported that there are 30,000 people. Looks like they're showing footage from Taksim. […]

@pinarinfanta: Belki de içimi en çok burkan ayakkabısının altındaki delikti,sessizce kaldırımda yatıyordu..suçu sadece ‘Ermeni' olmaktı #kardesimsinhrant

Perhaps the most heart wrenching [image] was the hole in his shoe. He was silently lying there on the ground… His only guilt was that he was “Armenian”. #you'remybrotherhrant

@ETemelkuran: 2nd march in Istanbul today for #hrantdink case.1st one gathered thousands, ppl r gathering again. http://pic.twitter.com/FG1XEgSd via@efkanbolac

@ETemelkuran: One of the most prominent writers Vedat Türkali joined the protests for #hrantdink today. via @mungan_murathan http://pic.twitter.com/BenLfLQo”

@ETemelkuran: The protest in Bodrum tdy.In several cities ppl protested the unjust verdict in #hrantdink case via @beynigezmelerde http://pic.twitter.com/vmtJpkvo”

@ETemelkuran: Ppl of Istanbul r gathering to protest the unjust closure of #hrantdink case for the 2nd time today. The morning march was thousands.

@ETemelkuran: The march is begining inIstanbul.Ppl chanting:”Long live the brotherhood of the peoples!” #hrantdink http://pic.twitter.com/d3ok5oQ4 via@efkanbolac

@ETemelkuran: The streets of İstanbul city centre is shaking with slogans for #hrantdink! http://pic.twitter.com/4XMF4Duh via @efkanbolac

@ETemelkuran: The march in Ankara. After thousands gathered in Istanbul for #hrantdink now it is Ankara's turn. twitpic.com/896b80 via @matakanfoca

@techsoc: I keep thinking: This huge march symbolizes everything Hrant was. Such a shame that it was only his death that brought it about.

@techsoc: Here's a photo of Hrant's dead body. My grandma said: “I cried for days. Who could kill a man with holes in his shoes?” http://bit.ly/yqDn2N

@ETemelkuran: There was a whole under his shoe when #hrantdink was shot.pic shows”the crack in the justice system” pic.twitter.com/jgE3CjYn via@denizmistepe

Başka simply posted the statement in Turkish by ethnic Armenian journalist and writer Karin Karakaşlı made at the commemoration.

19 Ocak bir anma günü değil. Hiçbir zaman da olmadı. Zaten bu topraklarda ayrı ayrı yaşatılmış ne kadar acı varsa, hiçbirinin anma günü olmadı. Herkes acısının yaşatıldığı o tarih geldiğinde, kendince, bir başına kahroldu.

[…]

Dosya kapandı diyorlar bize. Kapandı mı bu dosya? Hrant Dink dosya değil ki kapatasın, o bir yara… Artık köprüden önceki son çıkıştayız. Oradan hakkıyla geçmeden tamamlanacak ödeşme, kurulacak düş, inanılacak adalet, yaşanacak memleket yok. Öbür türlüsü sadece yalan olur ve bir gün başımıza yıkılır. Altında kalırız hep birlikte.

O yüzden gün, sadece söz söylemek değil söz vermek zamanı.

Söz verelim mi birbirimize? Bu dava daha bitmedi.

Söz verelim mi birbirimize? İnsanlık daha ölmedi.

Söz verelim mi birbirimize? Devlet daha hesabını vermedi.

Sözümüz söz olsun. Bu adaletsizlikle yaşamak hepimize haramdır. Aksi için uğraşan hepimize helal olsun.

19 January is not a comemmoration day. It has never been. There has never been a comemmoration day for every other single pain caused in these lands. Everyone lived the pain alone in the period when it was caused, everyone suffered by themselves.

[…]

The dossier has been closed, we are told. Is this dossier closed? Hrant Dink is not a dossier to be closed. He is a wound. We are in the one but last exit before the bridge. There is no score to settle, no hope to harbour, no justice to believe in, no country to live in until you cross it properly. Any other way would be a lie and one day will come upon us. We will stay under the heaviness of it.

This is why it is time to make a promise, not to simply say we will.

Shall we make a promise to each other that this struggle has not ended.

Shall we make a promise to each other that the humanity has not died.

Shall we make a promise to each other that the state is yet to account.

We promise. Living with this injustice is forbidden for all of us. Be blessed all who struggle otherwise.

Judging from the commemorations in Istanbul and elsewhere, as well as from prominent figures and online commentary in Turkey, many appear to agree.

Global Voices Azerbaijan author Pervin Muradli provided the translations from Turkish into English for this post.

Greece: Cretan Masterpiece “Erotokritos” Translated into Turkish

Veroniki Krikoni — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 09:05:29 +0000

Stella Tsolakidou of the Greek Reporter website writes about the recent publication of the Cretan literature masterpiece “Erotokritos” in Turkish. Erotokritos is a 17th century epic romance, and has been translated by Professor Hakki Bilgehan, a Turkish microbiology professor, and published by the Foundation of Lausanne Treaty Emigrants [Turkish].

Turkey: Hrant Dink Murder Trial Closes

Nigar Hacizade — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:32:32 +0000

Five years and 25 hearings later, the trial to convict those responsible for the murder of Hrant Dink, a Turkish-Armenian journalist, has come to a close. The gunman, 17-year-old Ogün Samast, as well as over a dozen others accused of involvement in the gunning down of Dink in Istanbul in January 2007, were caught almost immediately afterwards.

However, according to Dink's family, friends and lawyers, the case is linked to Turkey's so-called deep state structures and the real perpetrators, meaning those who masterminded the crime, have not been brought to justice.

While Samast was sentenced to 22 years in prison last year, yesterday's verdict, which ruled that three other defendants acted as individuals rather than as part of a criminal organization, was a disappointment many had seen coming. From the pre-hearing statement of the group “Hrant's Friends” to the lawyer's statement after the verdict, and throughout a procession from the Beşiktaş Court House to Agos, the newspaper Dink edited, one sentiment stood out.

Journalist Yavuz Baydar summed up that feeling.

@yavuzbaydar: Dink davasına doğru, yolda. Karar çıkacak herhalde, ama bu dava bitmeyecek.

On my way to the court. Seems like a verdict will be issued today, but this trial will not end here.

Indeed, the same sentiment was also echoed in chants and placards. Çiğdem Mater tweeted a photo:

@cigdemmater: Mahkemeye yuruyoruz: oldur diyenler yargilansin #hrantdink http://twitpic.com/85jf4s

We are walking to the court: (the chant is) indict those who ordered the murder.

Mehmet Demir also tweeted a photo from in front of the court where Hrant Dink's widow Rakel Dink was among those standing behind the banner:

@memediko: 5. Yılında, 25. duruşmasında Hrant için, adalet için Beşiktaş Adliyesindeyiz… http://twitpic.com/88bgwi

On the 5th year and 25th hearing, we are at the Beşiktaş Court House for Hrant and for justice.

Another person for who seemed to anticipate the verdict was lawyer Efkan Bolaç.

@efkanbolac: Hrant icin Beşiktaş adliyesine gelinsin ancak adalet icin Beşiktaş adliyesine gelinmesin. Bugün adalet tam tecelli etmeyecek.

Come to the court today for Hrant, but not for justice. Justice will not be fulfilled today.

The group calling themselves “Hrant's Friends” made a statement before the hearing began. The video segment above contains footage of crowds walking towards the court house and chanting several slogans. The statement at 2:19 reads:

We know how they will decide. This is the state's decision, including its security forces, gendarmerie, intelligence, judiciary, media, government, opposition, those who decided to take Hrant away from us 5 years ago will make another decision today saying this was the work of a few hoods. They will try to hide in their dark world. How can they do this? We know who they are. There is something they don't know: before we say it is over, this trial is not over.

Some attending the trial also tweeted from inside the court. Özlem Dalkıran of the Hrant Dink Foundation, for example, quoted the lawyers for the prosecution.

@OzlemDalkiran: Kamu görevlilerinin kapsamlı soruşturmaya tabi tutulmasını defalarca talep etmemize rağmen bu talebimiz karşılanmadı #HrantDink

Our continuous demands for a comprehensive investigation of public officials as part of this case have not been met.

Efkan Bolaç also tweeted a part of their statement mentioning other similar cases in Turkey:

@efkanbolac: Rahip santaro ve zirve yayıncı cinayetinde bu örgütün eylemleri arasındadır. Devlet görevlileri bu davada dosyaya eklenememistir

Priest Santaro and Zirve Publishing House murders are among the actions of this organization. Public officials have not been included in this trial's file.

Bolaç also considered that the question of whether the crime was organized or not would have an impact on the sentence of the killer.

@efkanbolac: Eğer htant dink cinayeti örgütlü halde işlenmişse bu durum agirlastirici sebep olacaktır.

If the Hrant Dink murder was perpetrated by an organized group it will mean aggravated circumstance.

@efkanbolac: davada eğer suc örgütünün varlığı kabul edilip sanıklar örgüt üyeliğinden ceza alırsa karar cocuk Mah.De yargılanan samast'i da etkileyecek

If the existence of a criminal organization is affirmed in this case and the accused are sentenced under that crime, this will affect (the shooter) Ogün Samast, who is being tried at a children's court.

With journalist Yavuz Baydar tweeting that it would be a surprise if no verdict was announced, the Friends of Hrant then announced that whatever the outcome they would organize a procession to where Dink was shot.

@hrantinarkdslri: Bir saat ara verildi. Ardindan karar aciklanacak. Karardan sonra Besiktas'tan Agos'a yuruyoruz!

An hour long break, then the verdict will be announced. After the verdict we will be walking from Beşiktaş to Agos.

There has also been online and offline mobilization for a protest-walk from Istanbul's Taksim Square to the Agos newspaper on Thursday 19 January, the 5th anniversary of Dink's murder, as columnist Hilal Kaplan tweeted.

@hilal_kaplan: Hrant Dink suikasti davasından ne karar çıkarsa çıksın, adalet çıkmayacağını biliyoruz. Perşembe günü 13′te Taksim'den Agos'a yürüyoruz.

Whatever comes out of the Hrant Dink murder trial, we know it won't be justice. We will be walking from Taksim to Agos on Friday at 13.00

Waiting for the verdict in what was reported to be a packed courtroom, Özlem Dalkıran agreed:

@OzlemDalkiran: Bekliyoruz. Verilecek karar devletin kararı olacak, bizim degil. Biz #HrantDink in gercek katillerini buluncaya kadar pesindeyiz davamızın.

We are waiting. It will be the state's verdict, not ours. We will be chasing this case until Hrant Dink's real murderers are found.

Finally the verdict was read aloud and simultaneously tweeted.

@_chiquitita_: Osman Hayal beraat. Erhan Tuncel orgut lliderliiginden beraat. #hrantdink

Both Osman Hayal and Erhan Tuncel have been acquitted on the counts of membership of criminal organization, Tuncel having been accused of being the leader.

@cigdemmater: Tutuksuz yargılananlar da terör örgütüne yardımdan beraatine

Defendants who were being tried without detention have been acquitted on the count of aiding a terrorist organization.

@cigdemmater: Salih hacisalihoglu ruhsatsız silahdan 2 ay 15 gün

Salih Hacısalihoğlu is convicted to 2 months 15 days on possession of unlicenced gun.

@cigdemmater: Ahmet İskender ruhsatsız silahdan 10 ay

Ahmet İskender is sentenced to 10 months on the possession of an unlicensed gun.

@cigdemmater: Yasin hayalin Orhan pamuğu tehditten 3ay hapsine

Yasin Hayal is sentenced to 3 months on the count of threatening Orhan Pamuk.

@cigdemmater: Yasin hayal tasarlanmış adam öldürmeye azmettirmekten agirlastirilmis muebbetine

Yasin Hayal is sentenced to life sentence in solitary confinement with no possiblity of parole on the count of soliciting voluntary manslaughter.

@cigdemmater: Erhan Tuncel Mcdonakdsa dahilinden 10 yıl altı ay hapsine

Erhan Tuncel is sentenced to 10 years and 6 months on being involved in the bombing of the McDonald's in Trabzon.

Journalist Şirin Payzin offered their own interpretation of the verdict:

@siring: Örgüt yok demekle aslında sanık avukatlarının savunmaları kabul edilmiş oldu. Yani cinayeti bu isimler kendi kafalarına göre işlediler.

By denying the existence of organized crime, in a way the defense of the accused was affirmed. So it is as if these people committed the murder out of their own whim.

A press statement outside of the court from the Dink family lawyer Fethiye Çetin immediately followed.

Five years have passed since the murder. (His son) Arat had said they are making fun of us. They've saved the best for last, and we learned that today. It appears Hrant Dink was killed not by planned action but by a few hoodlums. Apparently there is no organization here. We did not expect this much, truly. What does this verdict mean? It means a deep tradition is not broken, and it is not allowed to be broken. This is the state's tradition of political murders, excluding its minorities and making enemies out of them - today's verdict affirms this tradition once again. Those who are extremely disturbed by the state becoming synonymous with adjectives such as the bomber of its own people, the perpetrator of massacres, arsonists, did not make any effort to get rid of these adjectives and turned down the opportunity. This trial was a chance to confront a history full of blood and pain, to cleanse, to say “never again” to murders like this, to democratize, but they did not use this chance. Those who were the “others” and the targets of the state, meaning the politicians and the ruling government of today, seem to have forged an alliance with the tradition that used to marginalize them. But they should know that unless the state is transformed, this alliance is temporary. […] Today, here, this verdict has closed the first phase where the murderers were tried, but this trial is not over. This is a farce, and for us this trial is only starting now. In this process of trying assassins a torch has been held to the darkness that has created killers out of babies. And the real culprits that had been trying to hide in that darkness have emerged. That is why this trial is only beginning now. There are many ways we can go and many areas we can use. We will use all of them with great determination, until the darkness is questioned, the culprits are convicted and we decide this trial has ended.

The crowd then started walking to Agos.

Hrant icin, adalet icin! #hrantdink http://pic.twitter.com/IO9sSZOD

For Hrant, For justice.

Meanwhile, journalist Hanım Büşra Erdal summed up the outcome of the trial.

@busra_erdal: dink cinayetinde sadece yasin hayal ve ogün samast tutuklu kaldı. erhan tuncel tekirdağ cezaevinden tahliye ediliyor #hrantdink

Only Yasin Hayal and Ogün Samast are now in prison in the Dink murder case. Erhan Tuncel has been released from the Tekirdağ Prison, where he was during his trial for the past 5 years.

As of the evening of 17 January, the first reaction from the government side was from Ertuğrul Günay, Minister of Culture and Tourism. According to various news sources, Günay called the verdict “grave,” believing that it will now go to the Supreme Court of Appeals. The verdict, as well as the five-year long judicial process, will also likely remain on Turkey's agenda, but for now all eyes are on a march to mark the fifth anniversary of Dink's murder to be held on Thursday 19th January.

Attendance, which has been significant in the past, is likely to be an indicator of public support for any continuation of the case.

Turkey: Trici Venola's Istanbul Drawings

Veronica Khokhlova — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:41:32 +0000

Trici Venola's wonderful Istanbul drawings and reflections - at her Drawing On Istanbul blog: “Plein Air drawing in Turkey: blogging about the site and the process.” More drawings by Trici are here.

Georgia: Return of the Meskhetian Turks

Onnik Krikorian — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 21:45:03 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage on Refugees.

The repatriation of the Meskhetian Turks to Georgia from Azerbaijan, Russia and Central Asia is not just a priority for the Georgian government, but also an obligation it has had to fulfill to the Council of Europe since becoming a member in 1999. Over 100,000 people were deported by Stalin in 1944, from the Meskheti region of Georgia, among them Hemshin (Muslim Armenians), Kurds, and Karapapakhs. By far the largest group relocated, however, were the Meskhetian Turks.

At least 400,000 Meskhetian Turks now live outside of Georgia, although it has been unclear how many would return in a process that should have officially ended last year, but which might be extended. This has been one of the reasons why the process of resettlement has taken so long, especially as ethnic Armenians now make up the majority population in what is now the Samtskhe-Javakheti region. As a result, in order not to strain inter-ethnic relations, the Georgian government is settling Meskhetian Turks throughout the country.

East of Center recently touched upon the sensitivities surrounding the issue:

Thanks to Stalin’s paranoia, millions of Muslims and members of various non-Slavic ethnic groups in the Soviet Union were forcibly relocated to Central Asia during the ’30s and ’40s. It’s hard to think of any of these communities that has been victimized more often and so thoroughly ignored by the wider world as the Meskhetian Turks. […]

Clearly, however, Georgia is not capable of resettling that large a population anywhere on its territory, much less the underdeveloped Samtskhe-Javakheti region where the Meskhetians originally lived. And then there is the Armenian question, and a large dose of anti-Muslim feeling. […]

However, in a two-year application period ending in July 2010, the Georgian government received only 5,841 eligible applications according to the European Center for Minority Issues (ECMI). This amounted to just 9,350 individuals. Ahıska Türkleri – Ahıskalılar explains what the Meskhetian Turks hope for:

We want to return our lands from which we were expelled unjustly. As of today, we have been settling down in 2000 different settlements at 9 different countries including USA. We have difficulty in getting citizenship, settlement permission and work permission in the countries where we live. Our culture and language is on the edge of vanishing. We want to return our country as Georgian citizens and to live in our lands from now on.

Osman Mekhriev (left) and Islam Niazov, elders of the Abastumani Meskhetian community, take a break from the holiday prayers during the end of Ramazan celebrations © Temo Bardzimashvili

Last year, Zaka Guluyev's Blog detailed the situation of some of those that have returned, mainly from Azerbaijan, to Samtskhe-Javakheti:

Muslim Arifov and his family has come back to Akhiltskhe three years ago from Saatly, settlement of Azerbaijan. Arifov says that now he feels happy coming back and live in his motherland Georgia. “My parents were unfairly deported from this region. Now I’m happy that I managed to come back and live in my home Georgia with my family.”

Two months ago Muslim’s relative Mehemmed Rehimov also decided to come back with his family from Azerbaijan and to live in his motherland Akhlstkhe. Mehemmed Rehimov says that Georgia seems better place to live in. “It’s very good sense to live in my motherland Georgia. two months already past after my coming to Georgia. I’m happy here with my family and I’m feeling myself very well”.

[…]

Ismayil Moidze, the chairman of the [Vatan Georgian Axhiska Turks] society says that, their organization was expecting more people to apply for returning. But he explains that many families refused to apply because […] many documents are required for applying [for] repatriat status in Georgia. […] That’s why many families decided to stay where they live”.

Rana Rajabova, a 24-year-old bride in the Azerbaijani village of Shirinbeili. Rana's grandparents, natives of the Arali village in Georgia's Adigeni region, were deported to Uzbekistan. Before the deportation they were told by the soldiers that they would return in 7 days, so no belongings should be taken. Her grandmother hid her gold jewelry at home with the hope of returning after a week. Rana's family has applied for the repatriation and says that they do not want to be "refugees." © Temo Bardzimashvili

Georgian Youth | Multiculturality | New Challenges looks at how the new arrivals are reintegrating:

In Samstkhe-Javakheti, the regional association “Toleranti” provides families of repatriated Meskhetians with legal counseling, medical assistance and language support. In the frame of its 3-year project “Provision of humanitarian assistance to repatriate Meskhs and prevention of “self-repatriation”, the association noticeably organizes classes for young repatriated Meskhetians twice a week. Youth who attend the classes hope to improve their chances of success at school, where they receive tuition in Georgian, and to support their integration in the community.

Considering how motivated they are to learn Georgian, and as quickly as possible, this integration is usually 100% successful.

[…]

As many others however, one thing prevents them from totally feeling home in Georgia: they are waiting for an answer to their application for the Georgian citizenship, which they sent two years ago. Without citizenship, they are not fully-fledged citizens in Georgia, and therefore struggle to have access to basic services like medical assistance. They have no choice, though: just like the others, they have to wait […] – this means a life of uncertainty in the long-term…

Portraits of Abdullah Gamidov, his wife Khalida, and her father Zia Chumidze lie on the checkerboard in the Gamidov's house in Kant, Kyrgystan. Zia Chumidze was fighting at the frontline when the deportation happened and never made it home. © Temo Bardzimashvili

Where's Keith comments on the work of Georgian journalist and photographer Temo Bardzimashvili who has been documenting the return of the Mskhetian Turks to Georgia as well as their lives in Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey. Some of Bardzimashvili's work, “The Unpromised Land – the Meskhetians’ Long Journey Home,” was exhibited in Tbilisi, sponsored by the European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI), and accompanies this post with kind permission.

Delizia Flaccavento also posts photographs of a Meskhetian refugee community in Buffalo, New York, as does Meskhetian Turk Refugees in Atlanta, Georgia (the US State). Meanwhile ECMI says there is a “serious need […] to enhance public awareness on the right of deported persons to return and on the repatriation process […], in particular through the media and the educational system.”

This post is part of our special coverage on Refugees.