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Turkish intellectuals and politicians joined a march organized on Jan 27 in Istanbul\u2019s Samatya district to protest recent assaults against elderly Armenian women, Hurriyet Daily News reported.<\/p>\nTurkish intellectuals and politicians joined a march organized on Jan 27 in Istanbul\u2019s Samatya district to protest recent assaults against elderly Armenian women, Hurriyet Daily News reported.<\/p>\n
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Many intellectuals and politicians attended a march organized on Jan. 27 in Istanbul\u2019s Samatya district to protest recent assaults against elderly Armenian women that the city\u2019s Armenian community are hesitant to define as hate crimes.<\/p>\n
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The march drew support from members of Istanbul\u2019s other minority communities, including Syriacs, Kurds and religious conservatives, who joined Armenians to bring awareness to a slew of recent violent attacks levied against the Armenian community. As part of the march flowers were left in front of the home of 84-year-old Maritsa K\u00fc\u00e7\u00fck, who was murdered last month in her home.<\/p>\n
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Organized by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and Turkey\u2019s main Armenian organization, the march saw Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) deputies Ertu\u011frul K\u00fcrk\u00e7\u00fc, Sabahat Tuncel and S\u0131rr\u0131 S\u00fcreyya \u00d6nder, former chair of the Freedom and Solidarity Party (\u00d6DP) Ufuk Uras and Hrant Dink\u2019s brother Orhan Dink participate.<\/p>\n
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Speaking to the H\u00fcrriyet Daily News, \u00d6nder said they would closely follow and negotiate with the Interior Minister about the incidents on Jan. 31.<\/p>\n
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Meanwhile, K\u00fcrk\u00e7\u00fc said it should be questioned why all the victims were Armenians. \u201cI hope the plots behind these incidents will be investigated efficiently and [the truths] could be revealed. Elderly and defenseless women are targeted; it is evident that the motivations behind them are hate and revenge,\u201d K\u00fcrk\u00e7\u00fc said.<\/p>\n
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Fear has spread within the Armenian community due to the attacks resulting in a limited number of people attending religious ceremonies, according to leaders from Samatya\u2019s Armenian Church, Surp Kevork. Yesayi Demir, director of Surp Kevork Church, said they were often in contact with security forces. \u201cThe investigation is ongoing, we hope the incidents were not hate crimes,\u201d Demir said, adding that the demonstration was a positive step since it gave a message of solidarity.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI guess the attacks were robbery attempts, I don\u2019t think they are organized, racist crimes,\u201d Hagop Yelegen, the brother of one of the recent victims, Sultan Aykar, said, adding that they have good relations with their Muslim neighbors. \u201cWe are not afraid. Such assaults are also aimed at Muslims.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cCivil initiatives are manipulating the incidents even though the offenders have not been identified yet,\u201d Arsen Ar\u015f\u0131k, an Armenian academic from Bo\u011fazi\u00e7i University who is an acquaintance of two of the victims, said. \u201cSuch comments disturb the [Armenian] community even more.\u201d Ar\u015f\u0131k also criticized his own community. \u201cWhy do they leave our defenseless elderly people alone? We have to come up with a rational solution to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
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On Dec. 28, 2012, Marissa K\u00fc\u00e7\u00fck was stabbed seven times before having her throat slit while in her home in Samatya. Two separate attacks were carried out in the past month against elderly Armenian women in the Samatya and Bak\u0131rk\u00f6y districts as well. One of the women, 87-year-old Turfanda A\u015f\u0131k, lost an eye, while the other woman was robbed and severely injured. Most recently, 84-year-old Sultan Akyar was attacked in Samatya, after which she underwent eye surgery.<\/p>\n
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