Back إنكار الإبادة الجماعية للأرمن Arabic Erməni soyqırımının inkarı Azerbaijani Адмаўленне генацыду армян Byelorussian Отричане на арменския геноцид Bulgarian Negació del genocidi armeni Catalan Leugnung des Völkermords an den Armeniern German Άρνηση της γενοκτονίας των Αρμενίων Greek Negacionismo del genocidio armenio Spanish انکار نسل‌کشی ارمنی‌ها Persian Armenialaisten kansanmurhan kieltäminen Finnish

Armenian genocide denial

Photograph of the Iğdır Genocide Memorial and Museum in Turkey
The Iğdır Genocide Memorial and Museum promotes the false view that Armenians committed genocide against Turks, rather than vice versa.[1]

Armenian genocide denial is the negationist claim that the Ottoman Empire and its ruling party, the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), did not commit genocide against its Armenian citizens during World War I—a crime documented in a large body of evidence and affirmed by the vast majority of scholars.[2][3] The perpetrators denied the genocide as they carried it out, claiming that Armenians in the Ottoman Empire were resettled for military reasons, not exterminated. In its aftermath, incriminating documents were systematically destroyed. Denial has been the policy of every government of the Ottoman Empire's successor state, the Republic of Turkey, as of 2024.

Borrowing arguments used by the CUP to justify its actions, Armenian genocide denial rests on the assumption that the deportation of Armenians was a legitimate state action in response to a real or perceived Armenian uprising that threatened the empire's existence during wartime. Deniers assert the CUP intended to resettle Armenians, not kill them. They claim the death toll is exaggerated or attribute the deaths to other factors, such as a purported civil war, disease, bad weather, rogue local officials, or bands of Kurds and outlaws. The historian Ronald Grigor Suny summarizes the main argument as "there was no genocide, and the Armenians were to blame for it".[4]

A critical reason for denial is that the genocide enabled the establishment of a Turkish nation-state; recognizing it would contradict Turkey's founding myths.[5] Since the 1920s, Turkey has worked to prevent recognition or even mention of the genocide in other countries. It has spent millions of dollars on lobbying, created research institutes, and used intimidation and threats. Denial affects Turkey's domestic policies and is taught in Turkish schools; some Turkish citizens who acknowledge the genocide have faced prosecution for "insulting Turkishness". Turkey's century-long effort to deny the genocide sets it apart from other historical cases of genocide.[6]

Azerbaijan, a close ally of Turkey, also denies the genocide and campaigns against its recognition internationally. Most Turkish citizens and political parties support Turkey's denial policy. Scholars argue that Armenian genocide denial has set the tone for the government's attitude towards minorities, and has contributed to the ongoing violence against Kurds in Turkey. A 2014 poll of 1,500 people conducted by EDAM, a Turkish think tank, found that nine percent of Turkish citizens recognize the genocide.[7][8]

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  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference evidence was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference academic consensus was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Sunyintro was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference foundational violence was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference unique denial was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Demirel & Eriksson 2020, p. 11.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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