Jttyilehus IM Clxiicia

G.430. M.309. 1921.VII. il/16739/3421; Geneva, 1st îio venfbe r, 1921 „ LEAGUE OF BATI PITS* JttyilEHUS IM ClXiICIA. lote by the Secretary-Genera l. The following documents are circulated for the inform ation of the Council and the Members of the League 1. Telegram, dated October 14th, from the Armenian Joint Council. 2. Letter, dated October 15th, from the Armenian Joint Council. Constantinople, 14.10.21. TELEGRAE. TO: ïhe President of the Council League of Estions, Genevac In the name of htusm ity we make th is supreme appeal imminon b in view of the ‘ ' evacuation of Cilieia, the last refuge of the remnant of the Armenian people in Turkey, Having been concentrated in Cilicia under the auspices of the Allies and with the promise of receiving their freedom, a new emigration is for practical reasons impcD sible« Evacuation without effective guarantees will be fatal to the Armenians* who will inevitably be handed over to extermination by the Kemalists. We therefore most urgently request that the plan of evacuation be abandoned, or that its execution be postponed until a national home has been decided upon by the Supreme Council and the League of Nations. Failing this,, we beg that a provisional international régime be established in Cilicia under the auspcies of the League of Mations, guaranteeing the existence of the Armenians* Letter follows. (signed) Patriarch Zaven. Bishop Sagliani Professor Bezd|ian. \ \ içraaslg^MS* Constantinople, October 15th, 1921, A r me n i an Je in t C cuncil. Gentleman, As tip responsible Beads of tlie Armenians in Turkey - that Christian population which has suffered more than any other during the terrible upheaval of the Great War - we fe e l i t our im perative and sacred duty to make a supreme appeal to the highest tribunal of Justice an1 humanity on the eve of an appalling calamity which threatens the most important remnant of our nation in Turkey, The Government of the French Republic has Just decided definitely to evacuate Cilicia, where, under the protection of the French flag, the Armenians enJoyed, in the regions occupied at this moment, security for themselves and their possessions, Cilicia is a country in Asia Minor whose inhabitants before the tVar included the over-whelming maJority of 407,000 Armenians and which, at the present moment number only 150,000. These Armenians who were scattered in the various town of gÿria and Mesopotamia, were encouraged by the Allied immigration authorities, to concentrate in Cilicia. After indescribable misfortunes, this population was thus established in that region expecting that their lot would be definitely settled. If the plan to withdraw the French troops from Cilicia is carried out without effective material guarantees, these Armenians would, without the slightest doubt, be delivered to certain extermination at the hands of the Kemalist authorities who exercise uncontrolled power and are responsible to no one. After the departure of the occupying forces, our co-religionists would be entirely deprived of protection and faced by elements whose h o s t i l i t y and h atred have reached th e ir h eig h t owing to the circumstances which accompanied and fallowed upon the vVorld War. The Nationalists do not forgive the Armenians fo^ having deliberately sided with the Allies during the grsat struggle; they do not forgive thorn for having furnished France with the legions which conque re; d 0 ' they bear them a grudge for the important part the Armenians played in Palestine under the command of ii&rshal A1 leaky, and for the organisation With which, on their own initi-r ; v they maintained an opposition in the Caucasus at the time of the downfall of the Tsarist régime in Russia; hut alk ali they hate them for the efforts they made and the s i e ; ,? they took to ensure, as far as possible, the maintenance of French rule in Cilicia which for them was a question of I.-.rc and death* If the Armenians 7/era actuated hy their national interests and their enthusiasm for the cause of lib e r ty igid civilisation, it is none the less true that their asp: met with the warmest and most encouraging approval on the part of the Allies, As ea rly as 1916, the French Gov3:-:;:i„evi I saw f i t to organise the first "Oriental Legion” which was recru ited amongst the Armenians, with a promise that Cilicir would "be freed. This force, which subsequently adopted the name of "Armenian Legion” soon comprised 5,000 volun » and the French contingenta which so 'brilliantly co-operated in the victorious offensive of Marshal Allenby in Palestine,, particularly in the glorious attack on Arara in September 1910, was almost exclusively composed of battalions belonging to this legion, France recognised the value of th is aid and spared no effort or expense in the establishment, and in a corria measure, in the maintenance in Cilicia of the survivors, especially orphans, from the Armenian deportations, The assistance rendered by the Armenians to the A llied cause, as represented by France, never fa ile d even during this period ; at the time of the temporary occupation of Marash, the support of the Armenians, both civilians and Legionaries, prevented the withdrawal of French troops from that town from becoming an irreparable disaster, and at Aintab the heroic action of the Armenians of that town, who, for more than a year, successfully resisted the Nationalists' attack s, was a decisiv e ft:otor in the conquest of the town by the French, who showed their gratitude to the valiant Armenian defenders. These circumstances have noturally doubled the age-long hatred of the Turks for the Armenians, whose aspirations towards an ideal of liberty and national security were considered treaso n ab le, and w ithout even aw aiting the evacuation of Cilicia by the Allies, this hatred found an Opportunity to vent itself in the most atrocious manner. The episode of Marash, which lies within the French zone caused the Armenians thousands of victims in February 1920. As a consequence of the well-known misfortune to the French flag, which was brought about by the nationalists, the Breach garrison had been surrounded by the Turks and an appalling straggle had begun- The battle lasted 20 days, during which the Armenians, thanks to their timely intervention made it possible for columns of reinforcements tJ relieve tho French garrison. After tie departure of the French, 15,000 Armenians,, without distinction of sei or age, paid with their lives for the assistance which they had given to the forces in occupation. The hatred of the Turk for the Armenian showed itself once more at HaJJin to which Turkish bands laid siege for eight months. After heroic resistance, the town was obliged to surrender in October of the same year, and of the 10,000 valiant Armenians who formed its population, barely a few hundred were able to escape and take refuge in Adana. Similarly, at Zeitun, the entire Armenian population, after having endured a siege of nearly a yo'-r an'"’ r h a lf, was 4 . exterminated, with the exception of about 150 who succeeded in reaching the zone of French occupation. The population of Seitun with its suburba, before the war, amounted tS nearly 40,000 souls. After the armistice, 1,500 su rv iv o rs of the d ep o rtatio n s returned to th e ir homes. These unfo rtu n ate refugees were once more driven to th e ir mountains by the Turkish mania for extermination,, Abouft 6 00 women and children were left in the hands of the Kemalists and their fate is unknown , She others perished in their efforts to escape from the eircile of fire surrounding them. Armenian settlements in Cilicia remaining outside the French zone» and the populations of Sis and of Kars- Pazar only owed their safety to their escape into the region occupied by the French troops. In these circumstances, the disastrous and inevitable consequences of the French evacuation of Cilicia must be obvious to all. The nationalists will continue their policy of extermination, the more so as they regard the refuge given to Armenians in this district as amounting to a constant threat of intervention by * ranee or by some other Allied Power as a pretext for political or economic penetration* Humanity cannot view with indifference the ter lib le tragedy threatening th overtake these last remnants of our persecuted nation» We utter a final cry of distress and we appeal to the sentiments of Justice and equity of the League of Bâtions, which can already claim the eternal grati tude of the Armenians for the proposal 6>ade at the meeting of the Supreme Council on September SI, 1921, for the estab lishment of an Armenian national independent Home. V/e be g It to intervene with the Government of the French Republic fof the maintenance of the Cilician occupation at least until normal stable conditions are restored, in the Near East and until peace ah3 been concluded and a legal Government established in Turkey which will respect the rights of ethno logic m in o ritie s and which shall be recognised by the Allied Powe rs „ If, however, in spite of all, in spite of the appalling danger which threatens our countrymen, and in spite of the promises which have been made to them, the French do not think it necessary to remain longer in Cilicia, a provisional régime should be established in the districts of Bilicia inhabited by Armenians,as for example an effective neutral administration, -placed under the control of 1 run ce, or of an international organisation, under the League of Nations, This organisation should be provided with effective means for assuring the safety of Armenians, at least until such time as an-Armenian national home has been definitely established, the final treaty of peace with tho Allies concluded ; a single responsible Government created, and the necessary guarantees for the execution of and respect for the rights of ethnologic minorities in Turkey have been assured^ We have the honour, etc., Chief of the Armenian The Locum-Ienens of The Patriachate Protestant Community.

Load more