Consequences of Genocide recognition may be grave for Turkey, Kurdish writer says

Aida Avetisyan
“Radiolur”

The son of a Kurdish man and a Turkish woman, Recep Marasli was first jailed at the age of 15. He was imprisoned for another four times and spent years in the Turkish prison. He’s the author of the book “The Armenian national democratic movement and the genocide of 1915,” which presents the planning of the Armenian Genocide and the participation of Kurds in it. In the year 2000 he left Turkey and found political asylum in Germany. In 2004 in cooperation with two other Kurdish intellectuals he founded a committee supporting genocide survivors.

Recep Marasli is also a member of the Frankfurt-based organization struggling against genocides. Members of the organization visit Armenia every year on April 24 to pay tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims.

Turkey will not recognize the Armenian Genocide before 2015, as it is aware the issue is political, Recep Marasli told reporters in Yerevan, adding that the consequences of recognition may be very serious, and Ankara is wary of this.

According to Marasli, the issue of the Armenian genocide has become a topic of discussion in Turkey after Hrant Dink’s assassination. Turkish intellectuals, NGOs and the youth are interested in the issue and are ready to face it.