Armenian Genocide: My Story: Two Faces of Bayburt 1916

In my post of 17 April titled From De Sica to Khardalian : Filming Rape in War and Genocide I have made a promise saying:

"I wish a filmmaker like Khardalian had filmed Mehmet Ali Mehmetoğlu from the Yukarı Kırzı village of Bayburt Province who knew about 17-18 young women and girls, --one together with her baby--, who threw themselves to the well rather than living under occupation for reasons one can guess easily. Mehmetoğlu who died in 2007 at the age of 103 was apparently not a person of words. His response to the interviewer about how Armenians had treated them was succint: They were bad, too bad… Full text translation of the talk will be posted to this blog soon."

Bayburt

Bayburt is an Eastern Anatolian province in Turkey. In the 19th century it was a county of Erzurum Province in the Ottoman Empire. A brief history of the city in English is offered at Bayburt Chamber of Commerce web site. Bayburt was occupied by Russia during 1828-29 and 1877-1878 Ottoman – Russian Wars earlier. The interview below is related to the third occupation which took place in 1916 and lasted for about two years until 21 February 1918. (Photo from: http://www.viewphotos.org/turkey/images-of-Bayburt-932.html

A third party account in Memoirs of Red Cross Attendant Tatiana Karameli, student of Russian Medicine School, serving at Russian Red Cross 1917-18 reads as follow:

"I arrived in Bayburt on August 8, 1917. What I saw was terrifying. Armenians under the Russian administration were committing horrifying, wild atrocities against Turks in Bayburt and Ispir. The rebels named Arshak and Antranik, slaughtered the children in the orphanage I worked at with their daggers. They raped young girls and women. They took away 150 children with them while they were withdrawing from Bayburt and killed most of them while they were still on the way." (Ottoman Archives BOA HR. SYS. 2877/1)

Armenian Volunteer Regiment

If you read Armenian Revolutionary Krikor Amirian (June 20, 1888 – August 1, 1964)’s biography in Wikipedia, you may have difficulty in believing that the same place is mentioned. While, even by Patriarchate demographic figures for Erzurum Province in 1914, the population of Muslims were 400.000 and Armenians 215.000, how can one say that Bayburt was "one of the most heavily populated Armenian cities on the Eastern side of the Ottoman Empire" , is for you to judge. Detailed demographic study of the period has been carried out by Servet Mutlu in his article titled "Late Ottoman Population And Its Ethnic Distribution" (Nüfusbilim Dergisi\Turkish Journal of Population Studies, 2003, 25, 3-38).

It is equally striking to compare how the two sides see the events lived through. Amirian’s biography reads: “After the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II and signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, the First Armenian Regiment had been dissolved. The reason for all of this was that the Armenian forces was being supplied by the Russian Empire and after the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, the Russian Empire was officially out of the war and all the supplies to the First Armenian Volunteer Regiment had collapsed. Though supplies to the Armenians from Russia had been dissolved, Amirian and the First Armenian Volunteer Regiment continued their cause without Russian support and instead relied heavily on supplies from the British Empire.”(Photo from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1915-july-20-Armenian_volunteer_units.jpg)

Yukarı Kırzı Village today

The interview below was recorded on 7 April 2004. Mehmet Ali Mehmetoğlu died in December 2007 at the age of 103. His cemetery is in the Village of Yukarı Kırzı, Bayburt where the Kuyubaşı (Pit Top) Atrocities exerted by Armenians took place. (Photo from http://www.facebook.com/ykirzi)

Mehmet Ali Mehmetoğlu narrating Armenian Atrocities He Lived Through and Witnessed in the Village of Yukarı Kırzı, Bayburt
MAM (Mehmet Ali Mehmetoğlu): The Russians invaded the village on a night. We were in the hayloft. They came at night, and took us all out. They were mixed, Russians and Armenians. When it was morning we sat beneath the stairs [of a house]. There was a woman called Aunty Gueler. She used to live in the corner house on our road. We, all women and children, sat beneath the stairs nearby her house. One of the young women who had her small child in her lap, stood up and said: “Rather than living like this, it is better to die, I am going to throw myself to the well, you may follow as you wish.” She walked towards the well and first threw her child, then herself. One after another young women and girls stood up and followed her. If I am not wrong 17 or 18 of them threw themselves into the well; the well by the house of Aunty Gueler. INT (Interviewer): How long did it last? Did the Armenians stay for a long time in this village? MAM: They stayed a great deal. The Russians did not complete two full years. Revolution started in Russia. One morning when we woke up all Russians were gone! We were left with Armenians. Then we were really afraid. Armenians were very bad. INT: What did they do? How could you find food? Bread, food… How did you find food? Did they give you food? MAM: What food are you talking about? Where is the food? INT: Were you always hungry? MAM: Yeah, days passed by in hunger. However, when Russians were here, they used to cook with cauldrons at six or seven points [in the village]. We were young children, we learnt Russian a bit. When the food was distributed to soldiers we would take a bowl and stand by the door of the kitchen. We could speak a few words in Russian. The Russian would see us as he was distributing the food. He would ask us, “Children, are you hungry? “ and we would answer “Yes, we are hungry”. He would tell us to go closer and put some food into our bowls saying “Go and eat this”. Their language was easy, we learnt a little. We suffered in the hands of Armenians very heavily. INT: You say the Armenians treated you badly, is that so? MAM: They killed 14 people. He said “Shooting for three hours!” INT: Who said “Shooting for three hours!”, Ekna? MAM: The commander of the Russians. Listen, there was a man called Süleyman Ağa from the Paşagil Family. He hid his daughter-in-law in the hayloft. He had got a short sword with him, and he also hid himself in another corner. Armenians came and found the daughter–in-law. Süleyman Ağa could not take it and hit his own arm with the short sword. They were angry with him and the commander ordered shooting for 3 hours. They call the general “commander”. In three hours 14 men were shot. Some men were sent to Sarıkamış to work. But… after they [Russians] left, life with Armenians was too tough. INT They were strong, weren’t they? MAM: It was too tough. INT: Were Armenians and Turks living together before the war? MAM: Yeah INT: Were they neighbours? MAM: Yeah! INT: After Armenians left on 20 February, did the state help you giving food, money? MAM: Where was the state? How could the state help us? INT: How did you find food, bread? MAM: The state came over here long after they left. I mean the Ottoman officials took over long after they left, do you understand? They loaded stacks of hay on our backs and we took the hay to Bayburt for the army horses. Give it a thought. INT: You mean on foot? (The distance is 30 kilometers) MAM: On foot! What else? On our backs. INT: You mean walking from here to Bayburt with hay at your back? MAM: With the hay at our back… It was winter time… very cold. My feet were very cold. Do you understand? You get it? The state had fallen, sunk and disappeared. Erzurum mountains were knead with blood. What are you talking about? Thank God those days passed. God save us not to have such days ever again. Woman Voice [wife/daughter?] Amen Amen... MAM: Slavery is very hard…! No sleep until morning…! Hungry!! INT: Where did the food come from? What about money, food? Who fed you? MAM: Don’t remind me of those days! Those sufferings are left behind! What are you after? We had such days for instance, we would just swallow a piece of cheese as big as a dolma (i.e. stuffed grapevine leaves, that is about two morsels – Translator’s note) That was for 24 hours. When you are in fear you do not get hungry at all! Harvest time came. Russians put up signs which read “Banned” by barley fields. But they did not restrict wheat fields. We went by the side of the wheat field and lit a match. The wheat got fire. We collected the tops, grounded them at the mill and ate it in small quantities for a while. When you are in fear you cannot think of hunger! As I said earlier, although Russians are non-Muslims, they were compassionate. INT : Russians? MAM: Yes, they were very compassionate. But not Armenians, no..! INT: Would not Armenians give food? MAM: No, no, no! Armenians were really bad! Armenians were hostile aiming one’s life, property and honour! Non-Muslims are no good, but Russians turned out to be compassionate. After they left we were really scared of Armenians!		MAM (Mehmet Ali Mehmetoğlu): Ruslar burayı gece bastı. Biz bir merekteydik. Gece geldiler, döktüler bizi dışarı. Rus – Ermeni karışık. Sabah oldu merdivenin altında oturuyoruz. Orada Güler Bibi vardı. Köşedeydi evi. Orada oturuyorduk, çoluk çocuk, kadınlar Ta bu sırada çocuk kucağında bir tanesi kalktı, gelin. Dedi ki: “Böyle yaşamaktansa ölmek daha iyidir! Ben gidiyorum, kendimi kuyuya atmaya! Gelen gelsin...” Kalktı gitti, çocuğunu da attı, kendi de atladı. Öbürü kalktı, öbürü kalktı... Zannedersem 17-18 kız, kadın atladılar. Güler Bibi'nin oradaki kuyuya atladılar. INT: Ne kadar sürdü? Ermeniler çok mu durdu bu köyde? MAM: Durdular ya! Ruslar bu köyde iki seneyi tamamlamadılar. Rusya'da ihtilal çıktı. Sabah kalktık ki ne Rus var, ne de bir şey! Yalnız Ermeniler kaldı, o zaman bizi korku aldı...!! Ermeniler çok kötü, çok fenaydılar. INT: Ne yapıyorlardı? Yemek memek nereden buluyordunuz? Yemek, yemek, ekmek? Nereden buluyordunuz? Onlar mı veriyordu? MAM: Yemek, ekmek ne arıyor! INT: Aç mıydınız hep? MAM: Ya, günlerimiz aç geçiyordu. Yalnız Ruslar geldiklerinde burada alti yedi yerde kazan kaynatılardı. Biz ufaktık. Biraz da Rusçayı azar azar öğrendik. Karavanayı dağıttıklarında kap alır gider mutfağın önünde dikilirdik. Biraz da Rusçayı tek tük öğrendik. Rus karavanayı dağıtırken bizi de görürdü tabii. Derdiler bize-- “cucuk” derler çocuğa--, “cucuk kursak prapal”, yani “çocuk karnın aç mı?” Biz de derdik “tavariş prapal prapal...”, yani karnım aç, aç” “İgi, igi”, yani gel derdiler. Kaplarımıza biraz yemek koyarlardı ve “baş ol guşal, yani gidin yiyin”… Biraz da öğrendik, dili kolaydı. Anladı[n mı], Ermeniler kaldı. Ermenilerin elinden çok çile çektik. INT: Onlar mı kötülük yaptı size? MAM: Burada 14 kişiyi de vurdular! 3 saat vurgun dedi. INT: Ekna mı dedi? Kim dedi “3 saat vurgun” diye? MAM: Rus'un paşası. Şimdi bak, Paşagil'in Süleyman Ağa vardı. O gelinini evde mereğin bir tarafına sakladı. Kendi de bir kordası var idi, yani yarım kılıç. Kendi de bir köşeye sindi. Ermeniler gittiler, gelini buldular ve çıkarttıkları gibi … Süleyman Ağa artık tahammül edemedi ve o kordayı koluna vurdu Kolunu yaraladığı gibi “3 saat emir verdi kamandarları. Onlar paşaya kamandar derler. 3 saat vurgun dedi. 14 kişi vurdular burada. Bir kısmını da taa Sarıkamış'a yolladılar çalışmaya. Ama... Onlar [Ruslar] gittikten sonra Ermenilerle yaşantı çok çetin oldu çook! INT: Onlar güçlüydü değil mi? MAM: Çok çetin oldu. INT: Savaştan önce Müslümanlar ve Ermeniler bir arada mı yaşıyorlardı? MAM: Hee INT: Komşuydular? MAM: Hee INT: Ermeniler 20 Şubat'ta köyden gitikten sonra Devlet size yardım etti mi? Para? Ekmek? MAM: Devlet nerede? Devlet yardım edecekmiş? INT: Siz nereden buldunuz ekmek, yemek? MAM: Devlet nerde... Devlet çok sonra geldi. Yani Osmanlı devleti sonra aldı, onlar çekildikten sonra aldı buraları. Anladın mı? Buradan bizim arkamıza saman yüklediler de Bayburt'a götürdük devletin atlarına yiyecek. Bak düşün. INT: Yürüme[yürüyerek]? (Distance 30 km!) MAM: Yürüme! Ya ne? Arkamızda götürdük. INT: Buradan Bayburt'a yürüme[yürüyerek] sırtınızda? MAM: Bayburt'a yürüme götürdük. Arkamızda saman yüklü. Kış... Soğuk... Benim ayaklarım üşüdü. Anladın mı? Devlet yıkılmış gitmiş, batmış. Erzurum dağları kanla yoğrulmuş!! Allah'ım o günler geçti! Allah'ım bir daha göstermesin. Kadın sesi [eşi/kızı?] Amin Amin... MAM: Esaret çok zor bir iştir...! Sabahlara kadar uyku yok!! Karnımız aç!! INT: Nereden yemek geliyordu? Para, ekmek? Nereden yiyordun? MAM: Yav sorma! O çileler gitti. Ne arıyorsun sen? [Sen neden bahsediyorsun] Öyle gün oldu ki.. Mesela , dolma deriz.. Bir dolma kadar loru (ekşi peynir) yutardık. Aradan 24 saat geçerdi aradan! Korku var ya ? Hiç acıkmazsın! Ekin zamanı oldu. O Ruslar arpa tarlalarına yafta diktiler “Yasak”! Buğday tarlalarına bir şey demediler. Gittik buğdayların yanına, verdik kibriti baştanbaşa yandı. Kelle topladık kavurga oldu. Öğüttük değirmende, azar azar yedik. Korku var ya açlık aklına gelmez ki... İşte dediğim gibi Ruslar kafirdir ama çok merhametliydiler... INT: Ruslar? MAM: Yaa, çok merhametliydiler. Ama... Ermeniler değil haa! INT: Ermeniler vermez miydi? MAM: Yooook! Ermeniler fenaymışlar! Ermeniler senin canının, malının, namusunun düşmanıydılar! Kafirin iyisi olmaz ama Ruslar merhametliydiler. Onlar [Ruslar] gittikten sonra bizi korku aldı Ermenilerden!