After Dersim apology we are moving to 1915 events – Taner Akcam

From AM News: After Dersim apology we are moving to 1915 events – Taner Akcam

YEREVAN.- Turkish government is supposedly preparing a gesture to the 100th anniversary of the 1915 Armenian Genocide, Turkish historian, professor at Clark University in the U.S. Taner Akcam told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

Commenting on the statement of Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan regarding Dersim massacres, Akcam noted that many documents are preserved which assert that the massacres were aimed at the extermination of a nation.

“It was one of the biggest taboos in Turkey. Many materials are preserved. Survivors of these events are still alive,” Akcam said.

The official number of victims of the pogroms makes 13,000, unofficial estimates reach 40 - 50 thousand. Armenians escaped from the 1915 Genocide and sheltered in Dersim villages, underwent double genocide in 1938.

It is still unclear whether it is time to review the great fire in Izmir in 1922, he added.

“We are definitely moving closer to 1915. I suppose that the Turkish government is preparing a gesture for the 2015 anniversary. I do not know what it might be, but do not be surprised if something happens,” he stressed.

As for the number of losses, the historian recalled that the official date said 800 thousand Armenians were killed, it refers only to Armenians who died during the First World War.

“There are no exact figures. We can say with confidence that during the Armenian Genocide about million people were killed,” he concluded.