I’ve always firmly believed that this man has some significant responsibility for the Armenian genocide, but recently I’ve seen several Turkish Ataturk apologists recently claiming his responsibility is overblown and his complicity is somewhat debatable. If we have any Turkish comrades here I’d like to hear your perspective, or anyone who’s more knowledgeable. There isn’t a Prolewiki page on the subject, so I’d like to hear perspectives from here.
In 1915, Atatürk was a lieutenant colonel commanding troops at the Battle of Gallipoli, geographically distant from the Eastern Anatolian provinces where the mass deportations and killings occurred.
He was a high-ranking Ottoman officer and a member of Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), though he was not part of the inner “Three Pashas” clique that directly orchestrated the genocide. Early in his career, he publicly condemned the CUP leadership as “rascals” responsible for the massacres and acknowledged the deaths of approximately 800,000 Armenians. However, as he consolidated the new Turkish Republic, he shifted his narrative to blame Armenians for collaborating with enemy forces during World War I, helped establish an official state history that erased the genocide, and appointed several former CUP members to high government positions.
This is not a reality comrade. Genocide planned centrally not regionally. Ataturk was using genocide as a tool against the Enver Paşa.
Genocide plan was always an option of İttihat ve Terraki. Even though, German commanders in the frontline was recommending to happen to asap to gain resources from the Armenian people.
I’ll write a full analysis on that later.
I’d very much like to read it, because a lot of the apologia stems around the idea that he has an “alibi” because of which region he was operating in during the events.