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#21 Yervant1

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Posted 03 February 2018 - 10:44 AM

Rest in peace!

News.am, Armenia

Feb 2 2018
 
 
One of Armenian Genocide survivors dies aged 106 (PHOTO)
15:56, 02.02.2018
                  
 
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Armenian Genocide survivor Silvard Atajyan died on Thursday night at the age of 106.

Silvard Atajyan’s granddaughter Nune said the old woman was conscious and talking. She died sitting in her armchair.

In 1915 disregarding the threats by the Turkish authorities, the residents of Armenian villages on the Mediterranean coast climbed Mount Musa (Musa Dagh) and organized a self-defense. Silvard’s parents Hayrapet and Maritsa Sherbetyan were among them. She was only three years old during the  events.

Two years ago, Silvard Atajyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am that the Turks killed her uncle and threw him into the river, whereas her father managed to escape.

“In the daytime, the women were standing, without fear, with their fathers, husbands and brothers. At night, however, they were slipping down the mountain without being noticed, and to collect grapes and figs to somehow provide something to eat for the fighting men" she said. Sometime thereafter, Silvard Atajyan was to notice that her future mother-in-law, Silvard Atajyan, also was taking part in their defense of Mount Musa.

After the First World War, however, the Armenians again had the opportunity to go back to Mount Musa. But the Sherbetyan family, which already had settled in Aleppo, stayed in Syria. 

“The French gave our lands to the Turks,” Silvard Atajyan said trying to hold back the tears in her eyes. “We could no longer travel home.”

Silvard Atajyan’s granddaughter Nune told us that on every third Sunday of September, Grandma Silvard cooks Harissa, the traditional food of the Mount Musa residents, for her grandchildren and relatives. Thus, she pays tribute to her father and the defenders of Mount Musa.

In 2015, NEWS.am interviewed Silvard Atajyan within the framework of the “Survivors” project ahead of the centennial of the Armenian Genocide perpetrated in the Ottoman Turkey in 1915-23.

https://news.am/eng/news/434363.html

 

 



#22 MosJan

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Posted 07 February 2018 - 11:59 AM

Astvats Hogin lusavory 



#23 Yervant1

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Posted 04 August 2021 - 07:39 AM

QANTARA, Germany
Aug 3 2021
 
 

The fate of the Armenians Vakıflı: The last Armenian village in Turkey
The village of Vakıflı in the southern Turkish province of Hatay near the Syrian border, population 150, is the last remaining Armenian village in Turkey. Lately, interest in the town and the history of Armenians has been growing. By Jochen Menzel

The taxi driver from Samandağ, a town near the ancient site of Seleucia Pieria, was amazed when in June 1992 we asked him to drive us up the mountain Musa Dagh to the Armenian village of Vakıflı. We were in search of the "Mountain of Moses" described by Franz Werfel in his famous Armenian novel The Forty Days of Musa Dagh.

We didn't get very far, because the road soon ended at a field. After we started talking about the Armenians, however, our driver evidently realised what we were interested in seeing. So he took us to the small village of Vakıflı, or Vakıflı Köy as it is known in Turkish. We could already tell upon arriving at the little church with its steel-framed bell tower and small cemetery full of old graves that we now found ourselves in the only remaining Armenian village in Turkey.

We stopped at a two-storey stone house that was once the school and focal point of the village. Men and women sitting together in front of the church invited us to join them for a mocha coffee. Before we drove on, we also had to taste the plums, a variety called yeşil erik, which many hands had picked from the tree.

Service in the Church of the Holy Mother of God

Fast forward to many years later. It's Sunday, 1 March, at ten o'clock in the morning, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Bells are calling the faithful to pray at the Church of the Holy Mother of God, Surp Asdvadzadzin in Armenian, which is held here every fortnight. The modest church with its two small spires has in the meantime been completely modernised. Between 1994 and 1997 it was restored by the village community with the support of the Armenian Patriarchate in Istanbul and the Turkish government. In front of it is now a small paved square with trees. The outer wall is decorated with two khachkars, typical Armenian memorial stone steles with a cross carved in relief in the middle. The church interior, in a modern design with an altar, is concealed by a curtain for Holy Week. As usual, the priest has come over from the nearby port town of Iskenderun, where he serves a small Armenian congregation.

1_priest_and_members_of_the_congregation
The priest from Iskenderun and members of the local church congregation share traditional lavash bread after the Church service in the village of Vakıflı. The Church of the Holy Mother of God, "Surp Asdvadzadzin" in Armenian, was restored between 1994 and 1997 by the village community with the support of the Armenian Patriarchate in Istanbul and the Turkish government

The church is crowded today, because the service is dedicated to the memory of a parishioner who passed away 40 days ago. After a sung liturgy lasting nearly two hours, the congregation goes outside. Small pieces of blessed lavash bread are distributed at the exit. We follow the priest through an ornate wrought-iron gate into the cemetery for devotions.

The custom here – as it is among Muslims – is to commemorate the deceased by distributing food to be eaten together. And so, the service is followed by a shared meal, eaten in the new parish hall next to the church.

The transformation of a village

It's not only the church that has changed since our last visit. The village too, which perhaps still has around 150 inhabitants, has been redeveloped. The old schoolhouse along with two additional buildings has been converted into a bed and breakfast. And a museum on the history of Armenian villages on Musa Dagh has been set up in the basement of the community centre with the support of the Turkish Ministry of Culture and the Armenian Patriarchate. Inside, an Armenian association exhibits objects, pictures and texts with academic, diplomatic caution. The opening has unfortunately been postponed due to the pandemic.

In the old square in front of the former schoolhouse, a women's cooperative has established a sales outlet for handicrafts, jams, wine and spices. Somehow, the women have to live and to pay the expenses for the priest from Iskenderun from the meagre proceeds. A short way down the road, where the minibus to Samandağ stops, there is a tea garden offering breakfast and small snacks.

In the summer months, life returns to the quiet village for a few weeks thanks to the festivities and weddings held here. People whose ancestors once lived here want to go back their roots and homeland, to have their children baptised here and their marriage blessed according to the Armenian rites. But worries are also part of everyday life in the village. Young people are leaving, dreaming of a better education, work and a future in Europe, America or just Istanbul. The old folks are left behind.

2_graveyard_in_the_village_of_vakifli_jo
Graveyard in the village of Vakıflı. According to Jochen Menzel, "the history of Christian and Armenian settlement in this region is also a story of the early Christians, to which the four churches in Samandağ still bear witness today. But the history of the Armenian villages on Musa Dagh comes to an almost complete end with the year 1915, the beginning of the brutal expulsion of the Armenian population of Anatolia"

The Armenian villages on Musa Dagh

The history of Christian and Armenian settlement in this region is also a story of the early Christians, to which the four churches in Samandağ still bear witness today. But the history of the Armenian villages on Musa Dagh comes to an almost complete end with the year 1915, the beginning of the brutal expulsion of the Armenian population of Anatolia.

There are thus few reminders left today at the foot of Musa Dagh. Visitors still come to Hıdırbey, the village neighbouring Vakıflı, to see the centuries-old sacred Tree of Moses. A few restored buildings provide a glimpse of Armenian history.

Further up the mountain is the village of Yoğunoluk, which is described in detail in Werfel's novel. A small mosque now stands on the foundations of a former Armenian church there. The next village, Batıayaz, features an impressive unfinished three-aisled church. This sacred building was meant to stand for a new beginning when the Armenians who had once fled returned to their villages after the First World War. The Hatay region, together with modern-day Syria, was part of the French protectorate until 1939. But when the province was then incorporated into the Turkish Republic that year, mistrust returned. Most Armenians emigrated to Lebanon or Syria.

The "Vapur" memorial on the high plateau

The plateau at the summit of the 1,355-metre-high Musa Dagh is a site of Armenian identity and the main setting in Franz Werfel's novel The Forty Days of Musa Dagh. The inhabitants of six Armenian villages gathered here in September 1915 to escape deportation by the Ottoman army. To draw attention to their plight, they hoisted a huge home-sewn flag bearing a red cross and the words "Christians in Danger", which was visible far out to sea. The French warship Guichen spied the flag and succeeded with the help of four additional warships in evacuating some 4,000 Armenians to Port Said in Egypt a few days later. An account of the dramatic events is also given in a 1916 report by the German theologian and Orientalist Johannes Lepsius.

3_vapur_memorial_musa_dagh_jochen_menzel
The "Vapur" memorial on Musa Dagh. Vapur, meaning ship, commemorates the evacuation of 4,000 Armenians to Port Said in September 1915. The inhabitants of six Armenian villages gathered here in that month to escape deportation by the Ottoman army. "To draw attention to their plight," writes Jochen Menzel, "they hoisted a huge home-sewn flag bearing a red cross and the words 'Christians in Danger', which was visible far out to sea. The French warship Guichen spied the flag and succeeded with the help of four additional warships in evacuating some 4,000 people […] a few days later." The memorial was constructed in 1932 to mark the 17th anniversary of the expulsion of the Armenians

Today, after a climb of several hours, we reach this high plateau. We come upon a memorial, popularly known as Vapur, meaning ship, which commemorates the evacuation. Rough-hewn stones in the shape of a ship, two metres wide and four to five metres long, were piled on top of each other in 1932 to mark the 17th anniversary of the expulsion of the Armenian returnees. On the western edge of the plateau, which slopes steeply down to the sea, we look out over the hazy horizon where a large ship is cruising. It might be a Russian vessel bound for Latakia or the naval base in Tartus, Syria.

Tourists come to see the church and museum

Back to Vakıflı village. The weekend is approaching and the few restaurants in the area are preparing for guests. Interest in Vakıflı and its Armenian history is growing. Tourists come here to see the small church and the cemetery, or they stand in front of the still closed museum. Their faces betray inquisitiveness, a tentative optimism. Perhaps some contemporary witnesses or their descendants can still be found here?

Part of this hopeful development is the small museum that is waiting to open. It can be seen as a sign that social discourse is still possible even under difficult conditions. People want to get a close-up impression of Anatolia's history, which has been shaped so significantly by its large and important Armenian community.

Jochen Menzel

© Qantara.de 2021

 

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#24 Yervant1

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Posted 03 February 2024 - 08:48 AM

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Turkey - Feb 2 2024
 
HATAY ONE YEAR AFTER THE EARTHQUAKES Turkey's last Armenian village stands strong with its women after earthquakes
 
"As a cooperative, one month after the earthquake, on Women's Day, we immersed ourselves in work with the orders that came to us, trying to forget this period. But when they say 'it's being forgotten,' it really isn't being forgotten."
 

Last year’s earthquakes on February 6 and 20 undoubtedly changed the routines of intra-city travel in Hatay.

Most of the city's roads are in ruins not only because of the earthquakes but also due to the heavy machinery and trucks involved in debris removal. If you are driving from Antakya to Samandağ, you need to be careful along the way. The road, usually two lanes, can suddenly narrow down to one, and construction machinery and trucks can appear any time.

Vakıflı is a small village, approximately 5 kilometers from Samandağ and 25 kilometers from Antakya districts. Nestled at the foot of Mount Musa, overlooking the Mediterranean, it is surrounded by orange, tangerine, lemon, and grapefruit trees, emanating the fragrance of citrus. It is the last Armenian village in Turkey.

hatay-samandag-vakifli.pngVakıflı is located in southern Hatay. (Wikimedia Commons)

Journalist and author Serdar Korucu, in his 2021 book "Sancak Düştü" (The Sanjak Falls), writes about the Armenians of Mount Musa, once part of the "İskenderun Sanjak" during the Ottoman era:

"Out of the six villages on Mount Musa – Hıdır Bek/Hıdırbey, Yoğunoluk, Kebusiye (now known as Kapısuyu), Hacıhabibli (Eriklikuyu), Bityas (Batıayaz), Vakıf (Vakıflı) – many Armenians 'preferred' leaving Hatay. The ones who stayed gathered in Vakıflı, affectionately termed by the media as Turkey's 'only Armenian village' (actually the 'last Armenian village'). These migrations were not limited to Mount Musa. In 1936, the Armenian population, constituting 11% of the Sanjak's population, dwindled to a symbolic number."

While the earthquakes on February 6 did not cause destruction in the village of about 35 households and 135 residents, the earthquakes centered around Defne and Samandağ in the Hatay-centered quake on February 20 resulted in nearly half of the church and houses being either damaged or collapsed. The heavy rainfall the day before filled small potholes on the damaged village roads with water, making our journey to Vakıflı a bit challenging.

Vakıflı is a special case for women. The women's cooperative, established long before February 6, re-engaged in regional production activities shortly after the earthquake. We visited Vakıflı to see the women's production workshops and discuss the period before and after February 6.

vakifli-kilisesi.jpgAfter the collapse of its bell tower and damage in its walls, Surp Asdvadzadzin Church will undergo restoration.

We call Kuhar Kartun when we arrive at the Vakıfköy Patriarch Mesrob II Cultural Center. A minute later, she greets us from a short distance: "Come, come, we are downstairs, in the production workshop."

The lower floor of the cultural center, located just behind the Surp Asdvadzadzin Church, is the Mihran Ulikyan Production and Food Workshop. The center consists of two separate three-story buildings, including a guesthouse, lodge, and museum.

Kuhar Kartun is from the Vakıfköy Women's Cooperative management and has been living in Vakıflı for about 30 years.

"Unfortunately, Vakıfköy has been the last Armenian village in Turkey since 1938. I say 'unfortunately' because we are the only village left from thousands of villages in these lands," says Kartun. 

They make a living through agriculture, with citrus being the most important product, she says. "At a time when agriculture and production were declared over, we said, 'No giving up.' We came together in 2005 under the name 'Vakıfköy Women's Club.' In December 2021, we formed a cooperative. The goal is for every woman to earn an equal share. We said this village belongs to all of us. There were about 30 women. We, the women, united, sold whatever we could produce, and supported our family budgets. We educated our children."

"We rolled up our sleeves after the earthquake”

When we ask her about the February 6 quake,. She says, "I have very, very bad memories of those days." Her mother, living in İskenderun, lost her life under the rubble. She mentions being in İstanbul at that time, with her husband and son in the village.

After the earthquake, the village tea garden became a refuge for all families. Men and women, old and young, everyone lived there for a while, all together. She says, "I couldn't see those here, but I knew what they were going through, what they felt, that they couldn't enter their homes because of their fears. I returned from Istanbul in March. After coming back, I felt relief."

vakifli-cay-bahcesi.jpgThe tea garden became a shelter for the village people after the earthquake. Nowadays, it is a 'spare time' area for the village men; playing backgammon, watching others play... The owner Garbis says they are economically in a difficult situation, mentioning that either the mandarins stay on the trees or they can be sold for next to nothing.

During those days, they received orders upon orders for solidarity purposes, and they quickly consumed the products they could save from the earthquake. Kuhar, who tells us that they rolled up their sleeves afterward, says, "Working became therapy for us."

However, many women had to leave the village after the earthquake. "Why? For the education of their children," says Kuhar Kartun. "Some sent their children to another city, and those whose children were young had to leave themselves. Because transportation to schools from here is difficult; no vehicles, no services, nothing."

Still, hopeful Kuhar says, "I'm sure they will all come back." A short moment of silence. Then, with a confident _expression_ on her face, she says:

"Hatay will rise again. Antakya, Samandağ will rise again. Any place touched by a woman's hand will recover, I'm sure. Just let's unite."

vakifli-uretim-atolyesi.jpg

"Everyone has a different role"

Orange peels carefully arranged are gently placed into two large pots where the sherbet is boiling. A pleasant aroma fills the entire workshop. Elena Çapar, one of the most diligent members of the Vakıfköy Women's Cooperative, slowly stirs the orange peels with a large ladle.

Elena, who was in the village during the earthquakes on February 6 and 20, had her house destroyed, and they had to live in a tent for a long time. Nowadays, they stay as a family in a container provided by the patriarchate and installed by the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality. "My three sons, my husband, and my 92-year-old father-in-law. We're all together."

Her "workday" begins at home early in the morning, then she deals with cooperative tasks. If she's not cooking, she's at her desk, taking notes on orders with her phone in hand. At the end of the day, she returns "home," and the work cycle continues.

"As Vakıfköy women, we all participate in the production processes. Some of us use our hands, some our eyes, some our noses; everyone has a different role," says Elena.

"For example, today, the syrup for orange jam is boiling. Tomorrow is the day to fill the jars with jams. Orange jam is one of our main products. Walnut jam, orange jam, pomegranate molasses, concentrated syrups, olives, laurel soap. 

“These are our other main products. We make all of these with what we obtain from our own lands. We also have an agricultural cooperative in our village. We process the products we receive from them here."

Unable to forget

"They say, 'It's being forgotten,' but it's not forgotten," says Elena. "As long as we live, this fear, this pain will live with us."

"What the state doesn't do, civil society does"

Nilgün Aşkar, co-chair of the Health and Social Service Workers Union (SES) Hatay Branch and a psychologist, believes that the solidarity networks established and the cooperatives formed since February 6 have been positive for earthquake-affected women. However, she thinks that these efforts are not sufficient.

Meeting with Aşkar in the park area next to the Zeynelabidin Tomb in Armutlu Neighborhood, where the SES Hatay Branch container is located, Aşkar emphasizes that both women's organizations and labor-professional and democratic mass organizations sensitive to women have been trying to support women through solidarity networks and meet their needs since the beginning of the earthquake.

Psychologist Nilgün Aşkar, noting that earthquake-affected women have dealt with many problems over the past year, says, "Having to deal with so much deprivation, lack, and workload, taking care of household responsibilities such as children, disabled individuals, and the elderly in large families have greatly exhausted women."

Aşkar says that they have formed psychosocial support groups as SES, and women's organizations have carried out similar activities. "Yes, these are breath-giving activities, but they do not reduce this burden. A year has passed, but there has been no change in terms of women's workload, and perhaps paid work has been added, along with financial difficulties."

"Efforts are positive but not sufficient"

Aşkar points out that some of the civil society activities for women in Hatay have evolved into the process of cooperativization by the end of the year:

"In these cooperatives, work is being done on the production of local products and their marketing. Of course, these are positive and valuable developments. Unfortunately, they are not enough."

Aşkar, despite these supportive activities, emphasizes that a heavy labor process continues for women in tents, containers, and homes, saying:

"Yet, what is needed here is the rapid opening of care centers and nurseries, the implementation of supportive activities for people with disabilities, and making schools as serviceable as possible. And these can be done by the state. 

“Unfortunately, it is not possible to meet all these needs through palliative methods, projects, and various organizational efforts."

----------------

2023 Maraş Earthquakes

On February 6, 2023, earthquakes with epicenters in the Pazarcık and Elbistan districts of Maraş, registering magnitudes of 7.8 and 7.5, respectively, resulted in destruction in 11 provinces in Turey’s eastern Mediterranean, Southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Anatolia. The earthquake also caused significant damage and losses of life in Syria and the tremors were felt in almost the entire Turkey, as well as in various parts of the Middle East and Europe.

Maraş, Hatay and Adıyaman suffered the heaviest destruction. In addition to these cities, a three-month state of emergency was declared in Adana, Antep, Elazığ, Diyarbakır, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Urfa.

According to official data in Turkey, 50,783 people lost their lives, more than 100,000 people were injured, and 7,248 buildings, including public buildings, collapsed during the earthquake. Approximately 14 million people were affected by the disaster. After the disaster, more than 2 million people faced housing problems, and at least 5 million people migrated to different regions.

Hatay was hit by two more earthquakes, measuring 6.4 and 5.8 magnitudes, on February 20, 2023, with the epicenters in the Defne and Samandağ districts. Some buildings heavily damaged on February 6 collapsed due to these earthquakes.

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https://bianet.org/h...thquakes-291348


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