German intellectuals' call upon Merkel for recognizing the genocide

43 German intellectuals, including German and Turkish foundation chairs, artists, academics and intellectuals, released an open letter addressing Angela Merkel and Bundestag and urged them to accept the draft recognizing the Armenian Genocide. 

Signatories including Fatih Akın, Mark Sinan, Markus Rindt, Doğan Akhanlı, Aysun Bademsoy, Hülya Adak, Andrea Molino, Osman Okkan, Mikis Thedorakis, İlias Kevork Uyar demanded the draft on the Armenian Genocide, which will be brought to Bundestag's agenda on June 2, is accepted. 

Calling upon the German authorities to take a firm stand on June 2 and to call the crime perpetrated on the Armenian nation by its proper name, the intellectuals asked: “Imagine for a moment that you lived in a Germany where the Holocaust was denied -would this not be tantamount to a perpetuation of the actual crime?”

Issue a clear and unambiguous statement

Making a call for upholding the fundamental European values, the letter continues: “The denial of the Armenian Genocide lays the foundation for the violence of the present day: in 1915, the Armenians were labeled as terrorists and dispossessed of their belongings. In 2015 alone, upwards of 5.000 Kurds were -according to official figures- killed in Turkey due to alleged terrorist connections. Just a few days ago, President Erdoğan warned that Armenia was playing fire in Karabakh, bearing in mind that just over 100.000 Armenians still live in Turkey. We are of firm persuasion that all these events have been facilitated by the systematic refusal of Turkey to face up its history, and the fact that both is historical and present-day actions are met by silence on the part of the international community.

The author, Armin T. Wegner, had this to say about 1915: 'I went to German Foreign Office, where they knew about everything, but stated that nothing could be done.'

To ensure that the German-Turkish partnership continues to flourish, we therefore call upon you today to uphold fundamental European values and issue a clear and unambiguous statement.”