Monument to Humanity (Turkish: İnsanlık Anıtı, Armenian: Մարդկության հուշարձան) was a nearly completed statue in Kars, Turkey. Created by Turkish artist Mehmet Aksoy, the 30-metre-tall (98 ft) monument stood atop Kazıktepe, across from the ancient Castle of Kars. Visible from neighboring Armenia, the statue depicted two halves of a man, each reaching to hold the other's hand.[1][2] The monument was demolished in April 2011, only months after being criticized by then–prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as a "freak"[3] or "monstrosity".[4]
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Background
The statue was commissioned by the Kars municipality as a gesture of reconciliation in Armenia–Turkey relations following the Zurich Protocols, a 2009 accord to establish formal diplomatic recognition between the two countries.[4][5] Then–mayor of Kars, Naif Alibeyoğlu, referred to the statue as "his dream," that would help bring together the "brothers and sisters" of the two nations.[6]
However, the statue was also criticized, because it was erected without any consultation with the Armenian community, and represented a one-sided imposition rather than "reconciliation".[7] Egemen Özbek writes:
the use of the blanket category "humanity" obscures crucial cultural and political differences between ethno-religious groups, and difference in responsibility for, and benefits from, the Armenian genocide... a commemorative project that does not engage with questions of historical responsibility, recognition, and justice runs the risk of eternalizing the post-genocide status quo which favors the Turkish position and reproduces an asymmetry of power, without recognizing historical wrongs committed against the Armenians.[8]
Demolition
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the monument as a "freak"[3] or a "monstrosity" (Turkish: ucube) during a visit to Kars on 8 January 2011.[4] In spite of protests, the city authority decided to remove the statue.[3][5]
On 26 April 2011, demolition began with the dismounting of the sculpture's two heads, which Armenian sources considered effectively a decapitation.[9] Aksoy also said "I felt as if my children were being beheaded."[4] An official statement by the demolition company stated: "In order to dismantle it, first the head will be cut off and taken down with the help of a crane. Then, in the following ten days, the statue will be dismembered into 20 pieces."[10] The demolition was completed on 14 June 2011.[11]
While Erdoğan insisted that this was merely a question of aesthetics, international observers believed the demolition an attempt to appeal to nationalist sentiment ahead of the 2011 general election,[12] concurring with Aksoy, who said Erdoğan was "maneuvering to consolidate his reactionary base in the run-up to elections," and that he "bagged the vote of local Azeris," who denounced extending a hand to Armenia.[4]
Aftermath
As a response to Erdoğan's comments, Aksoy filed a lawsuit against Erdoğan for insulting him. Erdoğan's lawyer claimed it was a critique rather than an insult, but on 3 March 2015, an Istanbul court fined Erdoğan 10,000 Turkish lira for the insult, a ruling that was termed "a refreshing move by the Turkish judiciary" by oppositional commentator Sibel Hürtaş.[4] However later on a local court overturned that verdict.[13] Aksoy announced he would spend the money for a Nevruz Day party with his friends,[14] thereby directing haram (Arabic for "immoral") money to its adequately haram purpose.[4] In July 2019, the Constitutional Court ruled that its demolition violated Aksoy's freedom of expression and that he shall be compensated.[15]
References
Literature
- Alyanak, Oğuz (2012). "Facing the Ghosts of the "Statue of Humanity"". Lights. 1 (2). Middle Eastern Studies Students Association at the University of Chicago (MESSA): 33–46.
External links
- Image gallery at Hürriyet
- Iğdır Genocide Memorial and Museum, the tallest standing monument in Turkey