Aftermath
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| Occupation of Istanbul |
The Ottoman leaders issued decrees to relocate Armenians in Eastern Anatolia, because of the difficulty of identifying Armenian rebels who disguise themselves as innocent Armenians during the day, and at night become fedayees (rebels). The forced relocation had many excesses, and the reason for this was disease and lack of resources of the Ottoman government. The Ottoman leaders themselves were shocked at how they couldn't handle the relocations effectively, because they couldn't control the lawless lands of the East, where bandits were attacking the Armenians.
Regardless, the Ottomans did still try to pay the Armenians, shelter the Armenians, and guard the Armenians. All of which, is contradictory to the concept that an Armenian Genocide took place. The hanging of criminals and Ottomans who attacked Armenian convoys is also documented in many archives.
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| Boghos Nubar |
After the Russian retreat, the Armenian armies were unable to continue their efforts. They relied heavily on aid from the British, French, and Russians. However, they were not all trained soldiers, and so in full confrontation against the Ottoman armies, they had to retreat, and they resorted to hit and run tactics.
By the end of the war, the Armenians had been driven back to Yerevan, where they established their new nation. However, the Armenian armies had massacred and decimated hundreds of Ottoman villages. In addition, many Armenians fearing retribution for their own war crimes, migrated on French and British war ships and some migrated on foot toward Russia. The Armenian rebel leaders lived full lives, and many are still regarded as national heroes.
In contrast, the Jews did not rebel against the Nazis in World War II. The Armenian propaganda today, declares that the Turks were at fault for genocide, but they provide no proof that there was intention to exterminate. The only thing Armenians use today to back up their claim of genocide, is to quote various anti-Turkish newspapers or the American ambassador Henry Morganthau, who was asked to create propaganda by President Woodrow Wilson to convince the American public that America must join the war against the Central Powers.
If we were to believe the Armenian propaganda, which is widely spread today, then any rebellion that was put down, can be marked as genocide. The Ottomans may have been unprepared for Armenian relocations, but that doesn't make them guilty of genocide.
And for the ones who don't know the definition of Genocide.
This is the definition of genocide as adopted by the UN General Assembly:
"Any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life, calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; [and] forcibly transferring children of the group to another group"
There was no intent to destroy a group labeled as the Armenians by any such group in the Ottoman Empire. There were Kurds who wanted Armenians out of their land. There were Kurds who wanted to work with the Armenians. There were Kurds who wanted tribute from local Armenians. Either way, there were Armenians that were killed by Kurds.
Sure, a large portion of Armenian population was relocated, and in a sense, punished for supporting rebellion in the East. But we must not forget that, genocide is the intent to kill for the purpose of extermination. Yet many Armenians in Western Turkey were exempt. Armenians helping the Ottoman government were exempt. Armenians who were Protestant or Catholic were exempt because European diplomats wrote letters to Interior Minister, Talat Pasha, and he agreed that it wouldn't diminish the relocations ultimate goal of ending the rebellion.
There were Ottoman Turks who wanted Armenians as part of their army, their government. In fact, Armenians were in high ranking positions within the Ottoman government (such a thing would never have happened with the Jews in Nazi Germany). There were Ottoman Turks who felt, as a Muslim, you must protect other 'people of the book', and respected Armenians as fellow countrymen. There were Turks who felt that they were betrayed by the Armenian rebellions and so did want to kill the Armenians.
There were Armenians who wanted to remove Turks from their ancient homelands to create a Greater Armenia--these were the people who joined in masses with the Russian army and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation. And yes, there was violence. Sometimes to the point of exterminating whole villages to get Muslims off Christian land.
If genocide can be committed by a single person or small groups, then by the definition of the UN, the Turks, Kurds, and Armenians all committed genocide.
However, if we were to take it that a large collective can perform genocide. Then it seems to show that neither the Turks, Kurds, or Armenians committed genocide--because each group within them had different goals/priorities. To lump them all into the same boat and blame them for crimes is a pipe dream.
This is our perspective. Horrible things happened in World War I, not just to Armenians, but to ALL people all over the world. There was no evidence of a large collective with intent to commit genocide.
This relocation of Armenians, was nothing out of the ordinary for any European nation at the time dealing with rebellion and war. This relocation, is the reason why the genocide thesis is argued in the first place. If there was no relocation, the Armenians would have no case for genocide. Regardless, this was a standard of Europe. And as some Armenian scholars agreed, the German commanders that were aiding the Ottoman efforts most likely had the same solution for the Ottoman leaders and it's possible that they suggested the idea of relocating in the first place.
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| Turkish casualties of the War |
Talat Pasha etc, were all short-sighted, they overestimated their resources to relocate Armenians. They thought they could handle it without problems. Instead many fell victim to raids by bandits, Kurdish tribes, disease, and starvation. However, even the Ottoman army was starving and dying. However, they did spend resources to protect Armenians which means it simply was NOT genocide.
Why did they emigrated ?
Armenians emigrated because they could afford to. Many of them took what they had and decided "well if I am being forced to move Syria, why shouldn't I just hop on this ship and go to America, Russia, or France?" Doesn't this make more sense?
Many Armenians knew Russian, so they naturally fled to Russia where there were many Armenian communities already. Many had European education and knew English or French because of missionaries and diplomats in the area who interacted with the Armenian community. Of course they left to a better place, a land of opportunity-----there is nothing for them in Syria.
The Ottoman Empire was quite happy to see them emigrate. That means less daily salaries and less rations they have to pay for, for those that were relocated.
Allied ships landed in Cilicia, mostly French ships, and when the French were leaving the commanders allowed Armenians to board the ships and come to France.
If Armenians had all died, there wouldn't be such a large Armenian diaspora unless they reproduced faster than any other ethnicity! Many survived and have lived for generations in rich developed nations. Those Armenians were the luckiest of all.
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| Armenian Diaspora |
Lastly, there is one other reason why they emigrated. What do you think the Dashnaks and Hunchaks did when relocation orders were dispersed among Armenian populations? They spread their own orders and propaganda, telling all the Armenians to leave, run, and escape, because they did not trust the Ottoman government. They told people to not go to the camps the Ottomans provided. They told people to not go to Syria, because they would be killed in some imaginary desert. Of course, Armenians listened, and they fled to Russia or to Allied ships.
Do you really think Hunchak and Dushnak members would sheepishly go along with Ottoman plans of relocations? Of course not, they stayed and fought. They ran away or hid in the countryside. And they began to create propaganda, that the Ottomans were killing Armenians for no reason---why??? ---- because they hoped diplomats and missionaries who heard these horror stories would send Allied armies (and yes, they did send Allied armies to help Armenians).
The reality was this was a war. Massacres were common (on all sides). Disease was common. Food shortages rampant. Disease abundant. Survival of the fittest was the only thing that mattered during these times, if you were alone you were robbed or killed for the few pieces of clothes on your back. It was a troubling tragic time, and it all could have been avoided if someone hadn't killed the Archduke.
The fact is, no one needs to apologize, they simply need to move on. Sure you can blame the British for encouraging Arab and Armenian rebellions, you can blame the Russians for killing the Jews, you can blame the Armenians for killing the Turks and Kurds, and you can blame the Kurds and Turks for killing the Armenians, you can blame the Austrians for starting wars, you can blame the Serbs for assassinating Austrians.
The Europeans and Americans understood this blame game, hence why they let it go and stopped thinking about it.
Though when they did seek revenge and punishment, the Versailles Treaty, well that just created World War II! Hence, before you start World War III, stop blaming each other for the past and move on. Before you cry out "genocide", understand that the Holocaust was a very unique case and that no two wars are the same and genocide is a blanket term that can be applied to any war where innocent people died (which is every war)!
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