BY FIKRET BILA
MILLIYET- Everyone is talking about a statement made by Canan Aritman, Republican People's Party (CHP) Izmir deputy, which implied that President Abdullah Gul's mother had Armenian roots. Citing his family tree, President Gul said this argument was false. Gul stated that he is Muslim and Turkish on both sides of his family, as 100 years of the tree proves. Gul said that he felt he had to set the record straight in order to correct a tendentious lie which started when he ran for president last year and has recently been openly and deviously resurrected. He added that he wanted to establish the truth for history's sake.
Aritman's statement implying that Gul's mother has Armenian roots was unfortunate. The path she took was wrong. Whether Gul's mother has Armenian roots or not shouldn't be used for political fodder. Aritman's 'racial' approach was widely criticized, including by the CHP, her own party. This is another sign that what Aritman did was wrong. Aritman offended Turkey's Armenians with her suggestion about Gul. Her approach, which paints being Armenian as a crime or deficiency, is contrary to the Turkish Republic's founding principles. Her words ill suit a member of a party like the CHP (Turkey's first party), which established the founding principles of the republic. The Turkish Republic isn't based on an ethnic basis. Ataturk's understanding of the nation wasn't racist. In an excellent formulation of his understanding of the nation and nationalism, Ataturk said that the nation which established the Turkish nation is called the Turkish nation. Whatever one's ethnic background, each and every citizen of the Turkish Republic can undertake any post or duty. The president, Parliament speaker, prime minister, chief of General Staff and government ministers may have different ethnic roots. This is a requirement of the republic's founding principles.
Gul not only released his family tree, but also sued Aritman. The president represents the entire nation, and he's head of the state. Thus his filing a lawsuit against claims that there are Armenians in his family and allegations of discrimination might offend our Armenian citizens. If being an Armenian or having a family with Armenian roots is seen as something which has to be denied, this might cause misunderstandings, particularly in terms of Gul's responsibility to represent the entire nation. Although he was trying to prevent political exploitation, Gul shouldn't have sued her, but instead, out of consideration for our Armenian citizens, found it sufficient to issue a statement. Looking at the situation in terms of the republic's founding principles, Gul filing a lawsuit against Aritman's statements amounts to compounding one mistake with yet another."