The Economic Impact of the 1923 Greco-Turkish Population Exchange Upon Turkey
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THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE 1923 GRECO-TURKISH POPULATION EXCHANGE UPON TURKEY A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY AYTEK SONER ALPAN IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCES IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS AUGUST 2008 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Sencer Ayata Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Haluk Erlat Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur Yıldırım Supervisor Examining Committee Members Assist. Prof. Dr. Sheila Pelizzon (METU, ECON) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur Yıldırım (METU, ECON) Assist. Prof. Dr. Nesim Şeker (METU, HIST) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last Name: Aytek Soner Alpan Signature : iii ABSTRACT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE 1923 GRECO-TURKISH POPULATION EXCHANGE UPON TURKEY Alpan, Aytek Soner M. Sc., Department of Economics Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur Yıldırım August 2008, 167 pages The Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations signed on January 30, 1923 at Lausanne resulted in the first compulsory population exchange under the auspices of an international organization, namely the League of Nations. The Greco-Turkish Population Exchange marked a turning point for Greece and Turkey with regard to its demographic, social, political and economic effects. Although the multifaceted effects of the Exchange upon Greece have been extensively studied by the scholars of different disciplines, the Turkish scholarship is very limited in terms of documenting and analyzing the role of this event in the history of modern Turkey. The present study aims to fill this gap by assessing the economic effects of this event upon Turkey. This thesis fulfils the above task by examining the transformation of the basic sectors in the Turkish economy during the post-Exchange period. We argue that the Population Exchange had significant effects upon the Turkish economy. For example, in the agricultural sector the capitalist property relations on land were reinforced and the production patterns in certain agricultural crops were subject to a iv considerable degree of change. As far as the industry is concerned, the production of certain commodities deteriorated due to the rising competition between Turkey and Greece over the manufactured goods. The worsening international economic conditions exacerbated the effects of this competition upon the Turkish economy. Lastly, with the transfer of the Anatolian Greek merchants to Greece, Anatolia’s commercial links with foreign markets weakened much to the detriment of the Turkish economy. The intermediary position of the Greek merchants was gradually substituted by the newly-emerging Turkish mercantile bourgeoisie after the Exchange. This thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 introduces the subject and provides a survey of the related literature. Chapter 2 examines the effects of the Exchange upon agriculture and land tenure system. Chapter 3 is designed to evaluate the transformation of the industrial base inherited from the Ottoman Empire by certain factors including the Exchange. Chapter 4 deals with the effects of the transfer of the Anatolian Greeks and the arrival of the refugees upon the commerce. Chapter 5 presents general and specific conclusions in the light of previous chapters. Keywords: The Greco-Turkish Population Exchange, Ottoman Greeks, Primitive Accumulation, Turkification of the Economy, Turkish Economy, Early-Republic Period of Turkish History, Greece v ÖZ 1923 TÜRK-YUNAN NÜFUS MÜBADELES Đ’N ĐN TÜRK ĐYE ÜZER ĐNE ĐKT ĐSAD Đ ETK ĐLER Đ Alpan, Aytek Soner Yüksek Lisans, Đktisat Bölümü Danı şman: Doç. Dr. Onur Yıldırım Ağustos 2008, 167 sayfa 30 Ocak 1923 tarihinde Lozan’da imzalanan Türk ve Yunan Halklarının Mübadelesine Đli şkin Sözle şme uluslararası bir örgütün, Milletler Cemiyeti’nin yönetiminde gerçekle şen ilk zorunlu nüfus mübadelesi ile sonuçlandı. Türk-Yunan Nüfus Mübadelesi, demografik, toplumsal, siyasi ve iktisadi etkileri açısından Türkiye ve Yunanistan için bir dönüm noktası te şkil etti. Mübadele’nin Yunanistan’a olan çok yönlü etkisi farklı disiplinlerden bilim insanları tarafından geni ş biçimde çalı şılmı ş olmakla birlikte Türkiye’de bilimsel çalı şmalar bu olayın modern Türkiye tarihindeki rolünün belgelenmesi ve tahlili açısından çok sınırlıdır. Şu anki çalı şma, söz konusu olayın Türkiye’ye olan iktisadi etkilerini de ğerlendirerek bu bo şlu ğu doldurmayı hedeflemektedir. Bu tez yukarıdaki amacı Türkiye ekonomisindeki temel sektörlerin Mübadele- sonrası dönemde geçirdi ği dönü şümü inceleyerek gerçekle ştirmektedir. Nüfus Mübadelesi’nin Türkiye ekonomisi üzerinde anlamlı etkilerde bulundu ğunu iddia ediyoruz. Örne ğin, tarımsal sektörde toprak üzerinde kapitalist mülkiyet ili şkileri güçlenmi ş, belli tarımsal ürünlerin üretim kalıpları önemli ölçüde de ğişime uğramı ştır. Sanayi açısından, belli metaların üretimi Türkiye ve Yunanistan arasında mamul mallar üzerindeki rekabet nedeniyle geriledi. Kötüle şen uluslararası vi iktisadi şartlar bu rekabetin Türkiye ekonomisi üzerindeki olumsuz etkilerini artırmı ştır. Son olarak, Anadolulu Rum tüccarların nakli sonucu Anadolu’nun yabancı piyasalar ile ticari ba ğlantıları Türkiye ekonomisinin zararına zayıflamı ştır. Mübadele sonrası, Rum tüccarların aracı konumları ise yeni ortaya çıkan Türk ticaret burjuvazisi tarafından tedrici biçimde doldurulmu ştur. Bu tez be ş bölümden olu şmaktadır. 1. Bölüm, konuya bir giri ş yapmakta ve ilgili literatürü incelemektedir. 2. Bölüm, Mübadele’nin tarım ve toprak sistemi üzerindeki etkisini incelemektedir. 3. Bölüm, Osmanlı Đmparatorlu ğu’ndan devralınan endüstriyel temelin Mübadele’yi de içeren bir dizi faktör tarafından belirlenen dönü şümünü incelemek üzere tasarlanmı ştır. 4. Bölüm, Anadolu Rumlarının nakli ve mübadillerin geli şinin ticaret üzerine olan etkilerini ele almaktadır. Anahtar Sözcükler: Türk-Yunan Nüfus Mübadelesi, Osmanlı Rumları, Đlkel Birikim, Ekonominin Türkle ştirilmesi, Türkiye Ekonomisi, Türkiye Tarihi Erken Cumhuriyet Dönemi, Yunanistan vii DEDICATION To My Mom and Dad, Ay şe and Atilla Alpan, who have made it all possible viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank to the people who contributed to this study in various ways. First of all, I am very grateful to my academic advisor, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur Yıldırım for his vital encouragement, inspiration and contributions. Without his trust that I can do better, I could not write the following pages. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Assist. Prof. Dr. Sheila Pelizzon not only for her contribution to my thesis committee, but also for her intellectuality and her endless guidance for a disciple having a Physics diploma in his hand. I would like to thank to Assist. Prof. Dr. Nesim Şeker for his participation to my thesis committee and his engaged reading, critics and comments which undoubtedly improved this thesis. This writing process proved to be a confirmation of the collective character of the scholarly works. I am grateful to all friends of mine who supported me with their encouragement, trust and love: Efe Peker, Erinç Erdal, Deniz Dölek, Oya Gözel, Özgür Balkılıç, Yasemin Dildar, Ozan Yıldırım, Fatma Pınar Arslan and Berkay Ayhan. Gökçe Heval Şim şek helped me reach out to some sources in the Library of Turkish Grand National Assembly. Funda Ba şak Baskan most generously dedicated her energy to improving the thesis’ language. I would like to express my special thanks to Gözde Kök for her miraculous friendship each moment of which has enhanced my personality. I cannot acknowledge enough for her being hope in hard times. Спасибо ! I am thankful to my dear parents, Ay şe and Atilla Alpan. I express my love and indebtedness for their endless love, patience and support which I have tried to be worthy of. Naturally, this study is dedicated to them. ix Melih Koç, my friend and my little brother, was not unsparing in his support during my study. Moreover, he endured all the problems of living with me. I wish to thank him a lot for the last four years. To Melike Koç, my love and my best friend, I owe yesterday, today and tomorrow. I also thank to the personnel of Prime Ministry Republican Archive, Library of Turkish Grand National Assembly, Bilkent University Library, National Library, and especially METU Library. x TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM ............................................................................................................ iii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ iv ÖZ ............................................................................................................................... vi DEDICATION .......................................................................................................... viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................... ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ...........................................................................................