Ugly History: The Armenian Genocide - Ümit Kurt

Prevodilac: Milenka Okuka Lektor: Ivana Korom

In the 19th century,

Tokom XIX veka,

Christian Armenians in the Ottoman Empire lived as second-class citizens.

hrišćanski Jermeni u Osmanskom carstvu su živeli kao drugorazredni građani.

They were taxed disproportionately,

Nesrazmerno im je naplaćivan porez,

forbidden from giving testimony in Ottoman courts,

bilo im je zabranjeno da svedoče na osmanskim sudovima

and frequently attacked by local Kurdish tribes.

i često su ih napadala lokalna kurdska plemena.

In 1878, Armenian activists negotiated a treaty to enact reforms,

Godine 1878,

jermenski aktivisti su ispregovarali sporazum o reformama,

but Sultan Abdul Hamid II refused to make good on these promises.

ali je sultan Abdul Hamid II odbio da ispoštuje data obećanja.

And when an Armenian resistance movement began to form,

Stoga, kada je jermenski pokret otpora počeo da se formira,

the sultan took decisive action.

sultan je preduzeo odlučne korake.

From 1894 to 1896, he led the Hamidian Massacres—

Od 1894 do 1896 predvodio je hamidijske pokolje -

a relentless campaign of violence that took the lives of over 150,000 Armenians.

bespoštednu kampanju nasilja u kojoj je preko 150 000 Jermena izgubilo živote.

These massacres were the culmination of centuries of Armenian oppression.

Ovi pokolji su bili kulminacija vekova ugnjetavanja Jermena.

Yet they were only the beginning of an even greater tragedy—

Pa ipak, samo su bili početak još veće tragedije -

a genocide hidden under the guise of World War I

genocida skrivenog pod krinkom Prvog svetskog rata,

that would include the deportation, forced Islamization,

koji će da uključi deportacije, nasilnu islamizaciju

and mass murder of nearly 1 million Armenians.

i masovno ubistvo skoro milion Jermena.

As some of the most ancient inhabitants of this region,

Kao pripadnici najdrevnijih stanovnika ove oblasti,

the Armenian people were originally a collective of tribes

jermenski narodi su prvobitno bili skup plemena

living in the mountains of Western Asia.

koja su živela u planinama zapadne Azije.

By the 6th century BCE, these tribes were living in one nation

Do VI veka n.e. ova plemena su živela u jednoj naciji

called Armenia,

koja se zvala Jermenija,

which, over the following 2,000 years,

a koju je, tokom narednih 2 000 godina,

was controlled by various local and invading leaders.

kontrolisalo više lokalnih i osvajačkih vođa.

But whoever ruled their homeland,

No, ko god da je vladao njihovom domovinom,

a devotion to Christianity became a vital part of their ethnic identity,

odanost hrišćanstvu je postala bitan deo njihovog etničkog identiteta,

even as their neighbors increasingly adopted Islam.

čak i dok su njihove komšije u sve većem broju prihvatale islam.

In what’s currently eastern Turkey,

U onome što je danas istočna Turska,

Christian Armenians shared the area with Muslim Kurds for centuries,

hrišćanski Jermeni su vekovima delili oblast sa muslimanskim Kurdima,

until Turkic-speaking peoples invaded the region.

sve dok narodi koji su govorili turski nisu osvojili region.

Four centuries later, Ottoman Turks claimed these communities

Četiri veka kasnije, Turci Osmanlije su smatrali ove zajednice

as part of the vast Ottoman Empire.

delom ogromnog Osmanskog carstva.

While the empire’s systematic preference towards Muslims

Iako je zbog sistemske naklonosti carstva prema muslimanima

made life difficult for Armenians, Greeks, and Jews,

život Jermena, Grka i Jevreja bio težak,

by the late 19th century,

do kasnog XIX veka,

well-educated Armenian elites were able to attain prominent positions

visokoobrazovane jermenske elite su uspevale da zauzmu istaknute pozicije

in banking, commerce, and government.

u bankarstvu, trgovini i vladi.

However, this rise in influence became a source of resentment,

Međutim, ovaj uspon u uticaju je postao izvor prezira,

and many Muslim Ottomans believed Armenians

i mnogi osmanski muslimani su verovali da će Jermeni

would eventually betray the empire to form their own independent state.

vremenom da izdaju carstvo kako bi osnovali sopstvenu nezavisnu državu.

This belief is partly what led Abdul Hamid to begin the Hamidian Massacres.

Ovo ubeđenje je delimičan razlog zašto je Abdul Hamid otpočeo hamidijske pokolje.

Thankfully, the Ottoman Armenians fighting the sultan’s forces weren’t alone.

Srećom, osmanski Jermeni koji su se borili protiv sultanovih snaga nisu bili sami.

Armenians from neighboring Russia

Jermeni iz susedne Rusije

had recently founded two resistance organizations

su nešto ranije osnovali dve organizacije otpora

which offered a haven for refugees and supplied arms to villages under siege.

koje su pružale utočište za izbeglice i slale oružje selima pod opsadom.

Finally, in April 1909,

Naposletku, u aprilu 1909,

the sultan was deposed following the Young Turk Revolution.

sultan je svrgnut nakon Mladoturske revolucije.

But despite initial promises,

Međutim, uprkos prvobitnim obećanjima,

this new government also failed to pass meaningful reforms.

ni nova vlada nije uspela da izglasa smislene reforme.

A second wave of massacres ravaged the Armenian population,

Drugi talas pokolja je opustošio populaciju Jermena,

and the era of international warfare to come would only make things worse.

a razdoblje međunarodnog ratovanja koje je usledilo samo je pogoršalo stvari.

During the First Balkan War,

Tokom Prvog balkanskog rata,

thousands of Muslim refugees were sent to the Armenian stronghold of Anatolia,

hiljade muslimanskih izbeglica je poslato u jermensko uporište u Anadoliji,

further increasing tensions between Christian and Muslim Ottomans.

a to je dodatno povećalo tenzije između hrišćanskih i muslimanskih Osmanlija.

And in the first winter of World War I,

A tokom prve zime Prvog svetskog rata,

Ottoman general Enver Pasha attempted to flank opposing Russian forces

osmanski general Enver Paša je pokušao da opkoli protivničke ruske snage

by sending his troops through the frigid Sarıkamış mountains.

tako što je poslao trupe kroz ledene planine Sarikamiš.

When their unit froze to death.

Kada se njihova jedinica na smrt smrzla,

Enver Pasha blamed the disaster on “Armenian treachery,”

Enver Paša je tragediju svalio na „jermensku izdaju”,

and ordered the immediate disarming of all non-Muslims—

i naredio je da se istog trena razoružaju svi nemuslimani -

a decision which moved many Armenians from the front lines of an external war

odluka koja je preselila mnoge Jermene sa linija fronta spoljnjeg rata

to the trenches of an internal one.

u rovove unutrašnjeg.

By 1915, the Ottomans were enacting more violence

Do 1915, Osmanlije su izvršile više nasilja

on their own Armenian citizens than any foreign enemy.

nad sopstvenim jermenskim građanima nego nad stranim neprijateljima.

At this time, Turkish nationalist Talaat Pasha

Istovremeno, turski nacionalista Talat Paša

had become the de facto leader of the Ottoman Empire,

je postao stvarni vođa Osmanskog carstva,

and he ordered the deportation of all Armenians in eastern Anatolia

i on je naredio deportaciju svih Jermena iz istočne Anadolije

on the grounds of national security.

pod izgovorom nacionalne bezbednosti.

Talaat’s new legislation

Talatov novi zakon

allowed Armenian property and businesses to be seized as wartime necessities,

je omogućio zaplenu jermenske svojine i poslova kao ratnih neophodnosti,

and able-bodied Armenian men were routinely killed

a zdravi jermenski muškarci su rutinski ubijani

to lower the likelihood of resistance.

kako bi se umanjili izgledi za otpor.

Most Armenians were marched to concentration camps in the Syrian desert,

Većina Jermena je odvedena u konclogore u sirijskoj pustinji,

where they regularly suffered robbery, abduction, and rape.

gde su ih redovno pljačkali, otimali i silovali.

The few women and children who escaped deportation

Nekolicina žena i dece koji su izbegli deportacije

were forcibly converted to Islam.

su bili nasilno preobraćeni u islam.

The ruling Turks saw Muslim identity

Vladajući Turci su videli muslimanski identitet

as the cornerstone of their vision for the empire,

kao kamen temeljac svoje vizije carstva,

so escaped Armenian youths were placed in orphanages

te su odbegli jermenski mladi bili smešteni u sirotišta

to indoctrinate them with Muslim culture and traditions.

kako bi ih indoktrinisali muslimanskom kulturom i tradicijom.

Children who resisted were subjected to violence and torture.

Deca koja su se opirala bila su podvrgnuta nasilju i mučenju.

When the majority of these killings ended in 1916,

Kada je veći deo ovih ubistava okončan 1916,

it was estimated that the population of Ottoman Armenians

procenjuje se da je populacija osmanskih Jermena

had dropped from 1.5 million to roughly 500,000.

pala sa 1,5 miliona na oko 500 000.

In the decades that followed,

U decenijama koje su usledile,

many of the remaining Armenians dispersed across the globe.

većina preostalih Jermena se razišla širom sveta.

Families who immigrated to eastern Russia

Porodice koje su imigrirale u istočnu Rusiju

may have eventually been incorporated into the modern nation of Armenia,

su moguće vremenom inkorporisane u savremenu državu Jermeniju,

which received its independence in 1991.

koja je ostvarila nezavisnost 1991.

But to this day the Turkish government denies this genocide occurred.

Međutim, sve do danas, turska vlada negira da se desio genocid.

Official government language acknowledges the violence

Zvanični jezik vlade priznaje nasilje,

but defines the Ottoman’s actions as “necessary measures,”

ali definiše osmanske postupke kao „nužne mere”,

and Armenian deaths as unfortunate consequences of war.

a jermenske smrti kao nesrećne posledice rata.

In recent years, some Turkish historians have refuted this stance

U proteklim godinama, neki turski istoričari su odbacili ovo stanovište

and begun writing about this period with less fear of retribution.

i počeli su da pišu o datom periodu sa manje straha od odmazde.

In the pursuit of justice,

U potrazi za pravdom,

many Armenians and Armenian-led non-profit organizations

mnogi Jermeni i jermenske neprofitne organizacije

work tirelessly to advocate for the recognition of this genocide,

neumorno se zalažu za priznanje ovog genocida,

and accountability for those responsible.

i traže odgovornost za počinioce.