{"id":13476,"date":"2025-04-22T15:02:24","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T13:02:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/"},"modified":"2025-06-12T09:34:05","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T07:34:05","slug":"the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/","title":{"rendered":"The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>As the world marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on 24 April 2025, the enduring power of denialism continues to shape how the Genocide is remembered \u2013 or deliberately forgotten. Since the centennial in 2015, Turkey has significantly altered its denial policy in response to evolving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cornellpress.cornell.edu\/book\/9781501776052\/dark-pasts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">international norms<\/a> surrounding the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>What Is the Normative Change?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>From the late Cold War period through the post-Cold War era, parliaments, governments, and international bodies often used vague terms such as \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mfa.gov.tr\/the-events-of-1915-and-the-turkish-armenian-controversy-over-history_-an-overview.en.mfa\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Armenian tragedy<\/a>,\u201d \u201cArmenian catastrophe,\u201d or \u201cArmenian question\u201d to refer to the 1915 events. However, since the 100th anniversary in 2015, the recognition of the Armenian Genocide as an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/forget-about-turkeys-angry-reactioninternational-norms-armenian-genocide-recognition-clash-1892266\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">international norm<\/a> has grown significantly stronger. The normative change is reflected in the steady replacement of ambiguous language with the more definitive term, \u201cArmenian Genocide\u201d. The term refers to the mass killing and deportation of Armenians carried out by the Ottoman Empire during World War I, which claimed the lives of approximately 1.5 million Armenians.<\/p>\n<p>Recognition of the 1915 Genocide gained global momentum, with countries in South America \u2013 such as Chile, Paraguay, and <a href=\"https:\/\/anca.org\/armenian-genocide\/recognition\/international\/brazil\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Brazil<\/a> \u2013 alongside North American actors like Canada and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-europe-48739256\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">U.S<\/a>. However, beyond the Americas, the European momentum also garnered significant attention. The European Union (EU) played a particularly vocal role in this shift. The European Parliament (EP) first recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1987 and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.europarl.europa.eu\/doceo\/document\/TA-8-2015-0094_EN.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reaffirmed<\/a> this recognition in 2015. Since then, over 20 EU member states formally recognized the Armenian Genocide, including France, Germany, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/09557571.2024.2380383?af=R\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Italy<\/a>, the Netherlands, and <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/00016993221141587?icid=int.sj-abstract.citing-articles.5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sweden<\/a>. Within the EU, this recognition has evolved into a normative benchmark.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>How Have These Changes Affected Turkey?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">In response to growing international recognition since 2015, Turkey\u2019s stance has begun to shift. While the Armenian Genocide is still officially denied, a more nuanced picture has emerged. Since the early 2000s, academic and public discourse within Turkey has increasingly engaged with the historical realities of the Armenian Genocide, reflecting a gradual opening in certain intellectual and civil society circles.\u00a0<\/span>A strategic step occurred in 2014, when Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan extended <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2014\/apr\/23\/turkey-erdogan-condolences-armenian-massacre\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">condolences<\/a> to the descendants of Armenian victims \u2013 marking the first such gesture by a Turkish head of state. This move aimed to reduce international criticism while <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/23739770.2019.1737911\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">maintaining<\/a> Turkey\u2019s official position of denial.<\/p>\n<p>While acknowledging some basic facts, he carefully avoided using the term genocide. As he stated: \u201cAnd it is with this hope and belief that we wish that the Armenians who lost their lives in the context of the early 20th century rest in peace, and we convey our condolences to their grandchildren.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, a dual policy is evident. Erdo\u011fan is largely untroubled by foreign governments or parliaments recognizing the Genocide, often viewing such gestures as symbolic and non-threatening to his political standing. Turkey\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/jun\/02\/germany-braces-for-turkish-backlash-as-it-votes-to-recognise-armenian-genocide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">condemn<\/a> these recognitions and assert that they lack legal authority, even while maintaining or improving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/u-s-relations-with-turkey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">economic<\/a> relations with countries such as Germany and the United States that have recognized the 1915 Genocide.<\/p>\n<p>Inside Turkey, however, Erdo\u011fan and his close political circle have become increasingly vigilant and repressive in controlling how the 1915 Genocide is discussed domestically \u2013 particularly since the formation of the ruling <a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/chapter\/10.1007\/978-3-031-15652-6_6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">coalition<\/a> between the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the ultranationalist Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). This development reflects broader transformations in Turkey\u2019s political structure following the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.journalofdemocracy.org\/articles\/turkey-how-the-coup-failed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">failed<\/a> coup attempt in 2016 and the country\u2019s subsequent shift to an executive presidency.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_11997\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11997\" style=\"width: 2048px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11997 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan.jpg\" alt=\"A flame in a big round metal construction. Around the flame there are many red and white flowers. A big group of people are gathered around it.\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1365\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan-1320x880.jpg 1320w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-11997\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?curid=32381101\">The eternal flame at the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial in Yerevan, Armenia, commemorates the Armenian Genocide of April 24, 1915.<\/a> | Photo: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=User:%D5%8D%D5%A7%D6%80%D5%B8%D6%82%D5%AA&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1\/\">Serouj Ourishian via Wikimedia Commons | <\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 3.0<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><strong>Denialism from Both Ends of the Political Spectrum<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The AKP-MHP coalition has adopted a distinctly Islamo-nationalist and authoritarian rhetoric, intensifying state control over historical narratives and cracking down on dissenting voices. At the same time, a secular ultranationalist opposition \u2013 such as the Zafer Party \u2013 has emerged, contributing its own form of denialism. While opposition parties are often viewed as liberal or democratic alternatives, figures like \u00dcmit \u00d6zda\u011f (Zafer Party) promote hardline ethno-nationalism that mirrors <a href=\"https:\/\/sendika.org\/2023\/04\/ankara-governorship-banns-panel-on-armenian-genocide-683123\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">state denial<\/a> of the Armenian Genocide albeit from a secular, anti-refugee, and nativist perspective.<\/p>\n<p>Together, these political forces reinforce denialism from both ends of the spectrum, which complicates assumptions that democratization or regime change in Turkey would necessarily lead to greater historical accountability. Although a new wave of crude denialism, led by Islamists and ultranationalists, openly defends the mass killings, some Turkish <a href=\"https:\/\/www-tandfonline-com.dcu.idm.oclc.org\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/14683850701566419#d1e652\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">liberals<\/a>, secularists, and leftists have either recognized the Armenian Genocide or have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/20150424-turkish-residents-recognition-armenian-genocide-exhibition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">distanced<\/a> themselves from the issue of denialism, which was more prominent in the political consciousness of earlier generations.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Silencing and Repression<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>A striking example of this climate occurred in October 2024, when High Council for Broadcasting (RT\u00dcK), Turkey\u2019s media watchdog, revoked the terrestrial broadcast license of the Istanbul-based independent radio station A\u00e7\u0131k Radyo. The move followed a program aired on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/middle-east\/turkey-shuts-down-radio-station-over-armenian-genocide-remarks-2024-10-17\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">April 24th<\/a> \u2013 the International Day of Genocide remembrance \u2013 in which a guest referred to the 1915 atrocities as Genocide. RT\u00dcK justified the closure by accusing the station of inciting hatred and hostility. This case highlights the broader atmosphere of fear surrounding any public acknowledgment of the 1915 Genocide within Turkey\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n<p>This silencing is not merely about denial; it is about control \u2013 and its broader political context. By monopolizing how the past is discussed, Turkish authorities are waging a campaign not only against the Armenian historical experience, but also against the principles of free expression and democratic discourse. Within this framework, denial serves not just as historical revisionism but as a means of political suppression, aligned with broader efforts to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foreignaffairs.com\/turkey\/turkey-now-full-blown-autocracy-erdogan-imamoglu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">marginalize<\/a> dissent and exploit divisions within the opposition.<\/p>\n<p>This trend is not isolated from broader political transformations. On 19 March 2025, Istanbul mayor and <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/the-peculiar-turkish-corruption-issue-behind-istanbul-mayors-arrest-and-how-it-became-a-tool-of-political-oppression-252933\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">presidential candidate<\/a> Ekrem \u0130mamo\u011flu of the opposition Republican People&#8217;s Party (CHP) was detained by Turkish police on charges including corruption, extortion, bribery, money laundering, and alleged support for terrorism \u2013 particularly the Kurdistan Workers\u2019 Party (PKK). This was not the first attempt to remove him through legal means. In 2019, shortly after his narrow victory in the Istanbul mayoral election (by approximately 13,000 votes), Erdo\u011fan\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-europe-48739256\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ruling<\/a> AKP contested the results, citing alleged irregularities.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, Erdo\u011fan\u2019s increasingly repressive policies are unfolding within a favorable international climate for <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/turkey-a-favourable-international-climate-is-spurring-erdogans-crackdown-on-democracy-252694\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">authoritarian regimes<\/a>. This is reflected in the rise of figures like Donald Trump, now in his second term, and the consolidation of semi-authoritarian rule in parts of Eastern Europe \u2013 most notably under Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s government in Hungary.<\/p>\n<p>The 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide highlights a paradox: as international recognition of the Armenian Genocide grows, domestic repression in Turkey intensifies. Rather than fading, denial remains deeply embedded \u2013 not only within the current ruling coalition in Turkey, but also through its institutionalization by ultranationalist opposition parties.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the world marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on 24 April 2025, the enduring power of denialism continues to shape how the Genocide is remembered\u2014or deliberately forgotten. Since the centennial in 2015, Turkey has significantly altered its denial policy in response to evolving international norms surrounding the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":199,"featured_media":13792,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1125],"tags":[1136,1126,1210],"coauthors":[708],"class_list":["post-13476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english-en","tag-armenia","tag-culture-of-remembrance","tag-genocide"],"acf":[],"views":2072,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege - PRIF BLOG<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege - PRIF BLOG\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As the world marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on 24 April 2025, the enduring power of denialism continues to shape how the Genocide is remembered\u2014or deliberately forgotten. Since the centennial in 2015, Turkey has significantly altered its denial policy in response to evolving international norms surrounding the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"PRIF BLOG\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/HSFK.PRIF\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-04-22T13:02:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T07:34:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/2048px-The_Eternal_Flame_-_Armenian_Genocide_Memorial_in_Yerevan.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1365\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Eldad Ben Aharon\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@HSFK_PRIF\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@HSFK_PRIF\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Eldad Ben Aharon\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Eldad Ben Aharon\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f3048b396626a305838f53dc6274f9f2\"},\"headline\":\"The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-22T13:02:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-12T07:34:05+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/\"},\"wordCount\":1137,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/8736735037_b09d40a609_o.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Armenia\",\"Culture of Remembrance\",\"Genocide\"],\"articleSection\":[\"English\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/\",\"name\":\"The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege - 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Er ist Leiter des DFG-Projekts \u201e\u201aJ\u00fcdische Au\u00dfenpolitik\u2018 und der Exodus der syrischen Juden: Zionismus, Migration und die Diaspora (1948\u20131990).\u201c \/\/ Dr. Eldad Ben Aharon is a Senior Researcher at PRIF with a focus on the intersections of security and memory politics, drawing on insights from securitisation theory, foreign policy analysis, and oral history. He is the principal investigator of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) project \u201c\u2018Jewish Foreign Policy\u2019 and the Exodus of the Syrian Jews: Zionism, Migration, and the Diaspora (1948\u20131990).\u201d\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/author\/ebenaharon\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege - PRIF BLOG","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/blog.prif.org\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/the-politics-of-silence-in-turkey-the-armenian-genocide-on-its-110th-anniversary-and-a-memory-under-siege\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Politics of Silence in Turkey: The Armenian Genocide on Its 110th Anniversary and a Memory Under Siege - PRIF BLOG","og_description":"As the world marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on 24 April 2025, the enduring power of denialism continues to shape how the Genocide is remembered\u2014or deliberately forgotten. 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