Peter Lyukimson, Israel. Exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
Recently 15 tutors of Turkish universities visited Israel and participated in a workshop devoted to implementation of the topic of the Disaster of European Jewry in the schools and universities of Turkey. It was the second such Israeli-Turkish meeting, the first one took place in spring 2014 in Istanbul.
One of the initiators of holding the workshop is a 29-year-old historian, Chakhan Talki. He is a native Turk, a Muslim, who studied in the Netherlands and stayed in the country. He works in the Memorial Museum of Anna Frank’s House in Amsterdam. At the same time, Talki was vast contacts in academic circles of Turkey.
“Turkey has never denied the Holocaust; but history textbooks say only a couple of sentences about it,” Otom Uzar, a tutor of the Istanbul University, said in Israel. “The topic is hushed up, as many people think that it has connotations to the events of 1915. However, when the first workshop was announced in Istanbul, it turned out that there is great interest in Jews and Israel in Turkey. Even teachers from madrasahs expressed their desire to participate in the workshop. The Turkish mass media (except for fundamentalists) reported positively about the meeting. As a result of the workshop, it was concluded that studying Holocaust history couldn’t influence the problem of evaluation of the events in 1915. Moreover, it could help to see difference between a real genocide and attempts to falsify it. We addressed employees of the Jerusalem Memorial Museum of Yad Vashem to recommend what we should start from. According to them, at first it is necessary to read lectures of Holocaust history within general and additional courses of the 20th century history; and only after that should school textbooks be rewritten. We decided to follow the recommendation.”
However, it was found out that there is a school for children of earthquake victims in Istanbul’s suburb, where an elective course of Holocaust history is studied. James McMillan, an English teacher, is reading it. He also participated in the workshop in Israel. McMillan was born in London, but 13 years ago he married a Turkish woman. Since that time he has been living in Turkey.
Officially the visit by the Turkish delegation wasn’t connected with the governmental circles of Turkey, but the Turkish authorities knew about it, and if they had had any doubts, the Turkish delegation wouldn’t have gone to Jerusalem.
Dr. Uzar was asked how people in Turkey viewed Israel. He said that the incident with the Mavi Marmamara had influenced attitudes, and sometimes anti-Semitic views were obvious, but in general Turkey remains a tolerant country and believes that relations between the two countries would improve.
The same diplomatic answer was given to a question on the new conflict between Israel and Hamas.
“Let’s be honest,” Dr. Uzar said. “In Turkey people don’t like Arabs much, but they feel sympathy for Palestinians. The paradox is explained by the fact that Turkish society sees a victim of the conflict in the Palestinians. However, one could change this, if he watches the situation in the place.”
