Turk smuggling old books case
I've been wondering lately why Armenia is getting so much heat for this case. When I first read about it, my initial reaction was the opposite... the Turks are trying to sneak out old books and documents to use against us, or smuggle as they have been accused of. This measure of allowing them to access our archives is important, as they should allow us to freely access their's as well (which despite their claims that their's are open, that is not the case and you can ask Hilmar Keiser or Ara Sarafian). But the idea of them smuggling this stuff out of Armenia scares me.
In the news, the criticisms have all been directed at Armenia for having a "rediculous" law that no one knows about. Even Bob Dole sent a plea to Kocharian to release the Turk. Now the plot thickens as the trial proceeds. This guy is pleading guilty for smuggling. I'm sure there is SOOO much more to this story than I know or can follow from accross the world, but I'm interested in someone else's input with a more indepth analysis. I'm not saying I fall on a side, but why is Armenia getting so much heat for something that I frankly agree with. I don't like the idea of a Turk smuggling 300 year old books out of Armenia, even if he didn't know about the law. Is it just the type of treatment he is getting for the crime being extreme? That would be a different issue.
In the news, the criticisms have all been directed at Armenia for having a "rediculous" law that no one knows about. Even Bob Dole sent a plea to Kocharian to release the Turk. Now the plot thickens as the trial proceeds. This guy is pleading guilty for smuggling. I'm sure there is SOOO much more to this story than I know or can follow from accross the world, but I'm interested in someone else's input with a more indepth analysis. I'm not saying I fall on a side, but why is Armenia getting so much heat for something that I frankly agree with. I don't like the idea of a Turk smuggling 300 year old books out of Armenia, even if he didn't know about the law. Is it just the type of treatment he is getting for the crime being extreme? That would be a different issue.
posted by Arsineh at 8:46 PM
30 Comments:
He was acquitted yesterday I think.
If the NSS got involved, they probably even suspected him of espionage.
Anyways, he broke the law (probably unknowingly), went through trial, and was acquitted.
Arsineh, I'm sorry but this is not the case. Yektan Turkyilmaz was a scholar who broke the law but suddenly found himself in a ridiculous situation. Firstly, he is a Kurd. Secondly, he is one of the few Turkish intellectuals to support the Armenian case.
You seem to be rationalizing the case when in fact, given the high level of smuggling and corruption by officials, was a mistake by the NSS. Take a look at the letter sent in his support from over 250 academics.
http://www.unc.edu/%7Ekurzman/yektan_open_letter_by_scholars.html
I'll quote some of the names now who lent their support to Turkyilmaz apart from Bob Dole, a long time supporter of Armenia and Armenian issues. Some of those names included Taner Akcam, Hrant Dink, Orhan Pamuk, Peter Balakian, Vahakn Dadrian, Ara Sarafian, Ronald Grigor Suny, Hratch Tchilingirian...
And those are just some of the Armenian academics who lobbied on Turkyilmaz's behalf. Take a look at the letter for the rest of them. I'd also like to add that Hrant Dink was present at the trial as was Raffi Hovannisian. Everyone was shocked at how such a minor crime was prosecuted in Armenia and all of the names above questioned the way the law is subjectively applied in Armenia. Go speak to Carolann Najarian and I'm sure she'd tell you more about that.
Anyway, I'd just like to add that Hrant Dink in particular made specific reference to Turkyilmaz as being one of the few Turkish academics who stands by the Istanbul-Armenian community at no small risk to himself yet there you go speaking like this "Turk" is the "enemy."
He did break the law, probably unknowingly, but in a country where the rule of law doesn't exist, some very serious questions need to be answered as to why the former KGB did what they did. Usually, items such as these books are confiscated at the airport and the traveller fined.
I understand that the Diaspora must always propagandize and exuse everything that happens in Armenia but in Turkyilmaz's case this was a huge mistake. Not only is he known to be supportive of the Armenian case, as the first Turkish scholar to access the Armenian archives, the government of the ROA made themselves look bad and unwilling to allow open debate on the Genocide.
More details of the case as well as pics are online at:
http://oneworld.blogsome.com/category/turkyilmaz/
Anyway, take a look at http://www.yehtan.org to see that this is not the kind of case that you would like to think it was. Personally, I'd add that another serious question needs to be raised.
That is, where the hell was ANCA and the AAA in all of this? Usually, Turkyilmaz is the kind of uy they invite to give lectures and they should have done something in his support but as far as I know did absolutely nothing.
That should have been http://www.yektan.org.
Last summer when someone I knew was asked to sneak valuable ancient books out of Armenia, people were discouraging this person saying "you're not allowed, if you get caught it's not worth the hassle"
I just figured the "you're not allowed to take old books out of Armenia" thing was basic common knowledge just like the "you need to pay a stupid tax at the airport when you leave" thing. I'm not saying what happened to this guy is just/fair/right/wrong just wondering why... if common folk and random tourists are aware of this law this scholar wasn't.
Isn't there also some wierd thing you have to do in regards to taking certain pieces of artwork out of the country?
Sorry, he wasn't acquitted. He received a two year suspended sentence which was far less than the minimum 4 years prosecutors were demanding. I tend to suspect that Kocharian finally intervened behind the scenes, to let Turkyilmaz go free but to at least recognize his guilt in unknowingly "smuggling" books out of the country so that Armenia didn't look too stupid.
One question, however. How is that such "rare" and "valuable" books can be sold at a flea market like the Vernisage and effectively be taken out of the country unless the SELLER warns the BUYER that the law says they must first have permission.
Simply, if there are rare books that need protecting, should they be being sold in open-air markets to any tom, dick and harry in the first place? Yes, the law needs reforming and I'm sure after this case, it will be.
Onnik - you are being quite an optimist on the law change
Lori - yes, it's usually not a good idea to take out something older then 50 years old now. Before it was ANY painting at all needed a certificate, but now, only older than 50 years old.
The thing about this case is that he was not trying to sneak out one or two books... which would hardly cause anyone to bat an eye on the x-ray unless they were already suspicious of you (which they possibly were in this case), but he was trying to take out enough books to start a library! I find it hard to believe he was truly ignorant of the law, but it is possible. Anyway, just glad it's over...
Lori, were those valuable books your friend was asked to smuggle out bought from the Vernisage?
In Turkyilmaz's trial which lasted three days and I attended for one of those days, sellers from the Vernisage testified that they DID NOT warn Turkyilmaz that he needed permission.
One bookseller apparently said he did but then said, he probably didn't explain it properly. Basically, testimony revealed that in all cases, Turkyilmaz WAS NOT warned and in the one case he might have been, the seller did not explain it properly.
I'd also add another thing. From what I gather, the law says that any book over 50 years old needs permission from the Minsitry of Culture to take out of the country but the law does not say that anyone selling the book needs to tell the buyer that.
I'd also add that it covers ANY book older than 50 years old and from what I gather, the books Turkyilmaz took out from Armenia were not prohibited from being taken out of the country, just that under the law they needed permission.
Basically, the law needs reforming.
If a book is valuable and has to stay in a country, it should not be on sale to anyone in Yerevan. This is not the situation in Europe or the U.S. (you want to tell me that you need government permission to take ANY book over 50 years of age out of the country?)
It is from what I gather, a soviet era law that needs to be reformed to both avoid cases like this and secondly, to protect anything of cultural and historical value.
And let's face it. Here we're talking about Armenian customs, one of the most corrupt institutions in Armenia. Like they care about the law. No, they picked on Turkyilmaz by mistake, I'm sure. As many reports state, more serious cases of smuggling, including human trafficking, go unpunished yet prosecutors wanted 4-8 years for Turkyilmaz...
Thankfully, however, Turkyilmaz is not bitter and still remains a firend to Armenia. Perhaps we should send him emails and letters apologizing rather than trying to find a reason why we tried to lock this poor guy up for so long.
Raffi, he actually does have an Armenian library. Apparently, it is a great resource for those researching Armenian history which is also probably why so many high profile Armenian academics rallied to his support. The guy is pushing for Armenian issues to be researched correctly and it is at great risk to himself.
As for taking the books out, did he know or did he not. He says he didn't. Now, I wonder, as Hrant Dink said outside the courtroom, whether those Diasporans who have already taken similar books out without permission knew or not...
Open Letter by the Society for Armenian Studies to President Robert Kocharian of Armenia in Support of Yektan Turkyilmaz
http://www.yektan.org/yektan_society_for_armenian_studies.html
Onnik, don’t waste your time. Diaspora paranoia about Turks (even those sympathetic to Armenians) is not curable. Thank God there are people like Richard Hovannisian and Peter Balakian among them who called for Yektan’s release.
Onnik, I don't think the books I made a reference to were purchased at Vernisage, they were actually brought to our apt. so I have no idea where or from whom they came from.
I don't care if this guy is for Armenians or not, "taking" ancient books is wrong. So much about Armenians is lost cause someone who claims it wasn't for bad intentions took our history away. How would someone like it if he came to your house and took your valuables and never returned them. Sometimes I don't understand the way you Armenians think. If this is a cry for being liberal, it's pathetic!!
I'm sorry? Turkyilmaz took the books away or a dozen booksellers in Vernisage sold them to him and didn't tell him he can't take them out of the country without permission?
Ironically, the Ministry of Culture would probably have given that permission. Just to explain. The law does not ban taking books of historical or cultural significance out of the country.
It bans takning ANY book out of the country that's older than 50 years old. Please, are you suggesting that the civilized world adopt such a law?
Of course, pay the right size of bribe and you can probably smuggle anything out of Armenia. That's more of a problem than Turkyilmaz. Anyway, as Raffi said, I'm glad it's all over.
To imprison Turkyilmaz would have been a huge blow for those lobbying for recognition of the Armenian Genocide. The ammunition it would have given to the other side of the argument would have been unthinkable.
That he's not bitter and still considers Armenians his friends is a blessing and perhaps testimony to who he is. The support given to him in this case by some of the most prominent Armenian names and supporters of Armenia around also negates much of the damage.
I'm sorry, between meetings and a very busy day at work, I have not had the time to read all the information here that I desparately want to get to. But I do want to make a couple of quick comments. First, the purpose of me raising this whole issue is that there are certain issues that I don't think people in Armenia realize is not properly filtering out of the country. For example, when the opposition protests were taking place, all the news coming out of Armenia had one agenda or the other and the only honest reporting I saw was from the bloggers who could say freely what was happening in front of their eyes. Now in this case, I didn't see much other than a few news articles. Maybe I'm not digging enough, but still, I don't know what the full story is until my questions are answered. So I asked.
Now, based on some things I read in Onnik's log, I'll say this. Kurd or Turk, whether he acknowledges the genocide or not should not be a determining factor on how he gets treated if you want to look at the true justice of the matter. Sure, I'm more prone to letting him go if he supports us, but that's not the issue. So he broke the law. A law that I imagine he could have figured existed as everything else you take out of Armenia is such a production. Whether it's a just law is another issue. Now, the fact that the government doesn't always follow these laws is not a reason to say, well why him? It should raise our attention to the other corrupt smuggling going on and begin law enforcement in this lawless land. No I'm not that naive, but it shouldn't be used as an excuse.
As for how he was treated, that's beyond me. I don't know. I'm sure the Armenian government mishandled the whole thing. I'm not your stereotypical Armenian that thinks Armenia can do no wrong. I realize the Armenian government is a problem on its own. But I'm merely raising questions that I'd like to think others might be wondering as well. Perhaps you've answered them.
On another note, I think it's unfair to say the Armenian Diaspora must always propagandize and exuse everything that happens in Armenia because I don't think we do. I think corruption in Armenia is a huge concern for us, but it's not an issue we can really take up. That is something people in Armenia must do. As for the ANCA and AAA, I can't speak for AAA, but I will say this about the ANCA. The organization is designed specifically to handly US policy on Armenia. Therefore, we lobby the US government to support Armenian issues. I realize some people have wondered why we don't do anything about this. This is something I wondered a while ago, why ANCA doesn't do more stuff in Armenia. Every organization has it's purpose and ANCA's purpose is to get US support for Armenia, through Genocide Resolutions, aid to Armenia, Kharabagh, etc.
My final thought, there is this assumption that the Diaspora is paranoid about Turkish plots? (I think I read this somewhere). I think the Vanity Fair article has solidified our concerns. All the things I've been accused of paranoia for (I tried telling people about Turkey bribing Hastert for years and people said I thought Armenia was more relevant in the world than it really is...) Now we know that wasn't paranoia. And in an age where everything is a freakin' agenda, why shouldn't we be paranoid?
But to end on another note, I agree Onnik. We need to reform the law because the root of the problem is these artifacts being sold out in the open market. I'm always about the root of the problem as long as the problem is acknowledged.
Arsineh, yes, he broke the law either kowingly or unknowingly. And yes, the law should be applied to all. However, this was the first time it has been applied to books so can we assume that Turkyilmaz knew? I think not.
Or, let me ask you and everyone else out there. We know about carpets, I think, but say you buy a book at the Vernisage on anything (maybe it's merely third rate fiction or even a history book published in 1954. Do you know that the law says you must get permission to take the book out of the country?
Or someone gives you a 18th century bible that is not in a museum and that was openly bought at the Vernisage. Again, do you know unless someone tells you?
The most obvious issue is this. People need to know the law and be informed about it. You do not assume that people know, especially from abroad. That is why, for example, at UK customs there are leaflets, warnings and posters.
Where are they at Zvartnots? Do they exist? Can you assume that a tourist or foreign academic knows what they can or can not take out if there's no warning on the walls? No, you can not. It's an obvious flaw.
Secondly, here's the other deal about the Turkyilmaz case. It was NOT Customs that arrested him. It was the former KGB who when they arrested him, took his research notes and copies left on CD with friends. Also, we are reading that during his interrogation by NSS (KGB) they didn't ask him about the books but about his research.
So, we can see it was probably never about the books anyway. That was a convenient excuse to arrest him. In democratic countries, for example, people taking things out are the concern of customs and NOT the internal security service.
This is probably the main point. It wasn't about the books. That was probably a smokescreen. NSS made a mistake in targetting Turkyilmaz, needed an excse to arrest him and then wouldn't back down until international outrage (and a likely phonecall from Kocharian) forced them to.
I think it's all pretty clear. This was typical soviet era KGB in action.
Besides, when someone takes out books, not only does the questiona rise, where is the NSS's interest in this but also, why was Turkyilmaz kept for nearly two months in pre-trial detention in MAXIMUM SECURITY NSS/KGB custody?
Sounds normal to you? Doesn't to me. Bail was refused and his father or somebody was refused the right to visit him. Only human rights activists monitoring conditions in custody and his lawyer. The case stinks.
Yes, the reports make it pretty clear he was specifically targeted. However, I must say I have seen the law on taking out old things posted at the airport before, and in English nonetheless... don't remember if it was there the last time or not. Impressive for Armenia! :-)
Last year when I went back to the UK I can't remember seeing any warnings but haven't been out this year so hopefully someone can clear this issue up. How many warnings, are they easily identifiable and read from a distance and so on.
As for it being good for Armenia, well yes, if there are warnings anywhere where there is the risk of corruption it is vital that people know the law. That's why we now have information posters in many hospitals, for example, in order to bring on the day when patients refuse to pay doctors and nurses who demand payment for health services that by law should be free.
Same idea is behind all these government web sites. It's so information is now accessible and people know their rights. It's vital. Of course, knowing them and enforcing them are different things but certainly, it's a start.
BTW: This is what Turkyilmaz was tried under (Article 215, paragraph 2):
Article 215. Contraband.
2. Contraband of narcotic drugs, neurological, strong, poisonous, poisoning, radioactive or explosive materials, weapons, explosive devices, ammunition, fire-arms, except smoothbore long barrel hunting guns, nuclear, chemical, biological or other mass destruction weapons, or dual-use materials, devices, or technologies which can also be used for the creation or use of mass destruction weapons or missile delivery systems thereof, strategic raw materials or cultural values for the transportation of which special rules are established, is punished with imprisonment for the term of 4 to 8 years, with or without property confiscation.
---
So, books bought from the Vernisage are lumped in with Weapons of Mass Destruction. Sounds perfectly reasonable to me. Hell, I say the law should be tightened to include anythign ambiguous enough to give the NSS/KGB the pretext on which to arrest ANYONE they want to interrogate for two months in maximum security isolation from their family and friends.
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Yes, but are bad Armenian CD covers banned?
Onnik, which one is the front runner? Talk to me, brother. Let's lighten up the mood a little bit. So, what do you say, is it Paul with that disco shirt or this No-Em guy with the bitchen' chains?
And, still working on getting some funding for the Bambir 2 thing here in the States.
Let's put the Turkyilmaz thing to bed and move on. Lessons learned on all ends, hopefully. Let's let the guy read his books and each his Donir Kebop in peace.
-Meneshian
> Yes, but are bad Armenian CD covers banned?
Probably, if they're over 50 years old and the KB need to take you in for questioning for any reason...
As for covers, I do actually think that http://armenianmusicreview.blogspot.com/2005/08/worst-armenian-cd-cover-nomination-1.html is pretty good in a bad sort of way. As for the disco shirts, they kind of remind me of ELP's Love Beach...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Beach
I dunno if the chains should really count, since they're on the back of the album... so I still say Paul, baby!
Umm, Onnik? That ELP album cover is hysterical. Pure 70's. Hall of Shame material. Good one.
-Meneshian
Yektan was NOT arrested for smuggling. The KGB suspected him of something else (his first interrogiations were not about books...) but then couldn't come up with any evidence. They are too corrupt and incompetent to admit their mistakes. And so they decided to bring that smuggling case. Fortunately, Kocharian finally realized what disastrous consequences it could have for Armenia and the Armenian cause.
Anonymous, that's my reading of what happened as well.
Although Kocharian apparently realized the stupidity of KGB actions they are having consequences. A Turkish propaganda outlet on the Internet quotes Dr. Nilgun Gulcan, Turkish researcher,
as saying that no Turkish historian or IR expert could visit Armenia
after this case. "All Turkish academicians know that the real reason is different. Buying used books could cost your life in Yerevan if you are Turkish. Armenian archives are open but just to the pro-Government
Armenians. Neither Tashnak nor Armenia archives can be visited by
bipartisan researchers" she added.
The publication then concludes:
"Armenia argues that the 1915 Events were genocide and does not allow Turkish historians to use Armenian documents. Turkish Ankara and Istanbul archives are open to all researchers."
Well done, KGB gentlemen! Your dashnak friends won't forget your feat.
Ironically, it is believed that the Turkish authorities purposely ignored this case in the hope that Yektan would be sentenced to jail. Then, the propaganda advantage would have been enormous for them. Thankfully, however there has been some damage limitation and the fact that Yektan is going to go straight back to the Armenian archives might help some more. He also wants to come back again in the future. I'm told he really likes being in Armenia and has many friends here.
Incidently, in about 45 minutes I'm due to meet up with Yektan. He's apparently a really honest and decent guy and I think it was terrible what the NSS/KGB did to him. Still, most importantly, he is not bitter and even looked on the bright side of things. Means he can spend more time in Armenia!!!
Sorry, last comment was mine. Forgot to put my name in.
So, met up with Turkyilmaz last night along with two of his local friends. Also, two prominent Diasporans came along as well as a journalist friend who arranged the night out. Turkyilmaz is a normal guy, basically, and an academic. What happened was really wrong but thankfully, it's behind him now.
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