TheTemporary Law of Deportation, also known as theTehcir Law (Turkish pronunciation:[tehˈd͡ʒiɾ];lit. 'deportation' inOttoman Turkish), or officially, the "Vakt-ı Seferde İcraat-ı Hükûmete Karşı Gelenler İçin Cihet-i Askeriyece İttihaz Olunacak Tedabir Hakkında Kanun-u Muvakkat" (Provisional Law Regarding Measures to Be Taken by the Military Against Those Who Oppose Government Actions During Wartime)[1] was a law passed by the OttomanCouncil of Ministers on May 27, 1915 authorizing the deportation of theOttoman Empire'sArmenian population. While the law was allegedly temporary, the Ottomans' main motivation was to settle theArmenian question once for all, therefore permanently.
The resettlement campaign resulted in the deaths of anywhere between 800,000 and over 1,500,000 civilians, in what historians widely characterize as theArmenian genocide. The bill was officially enacted on June 1, 1915, and expired on February 8, 1916. On 18 December 1918, the OttomanChamber of Deputies declared the Tehcir Law and the temporary law which authorized selling of confiscated Armenian property rescinded and illegal.[2] TheAnkara Government reissued the laws on 14 September 1922.[3]
The Tehcir Law was part of the euphemistic "special measures" against the Armenian population taken by theOttoman Empire duringWorld War I. This was coupled with a second set of orders given to the"Special Organization" for the systematic elimination of the evacuated population during the death marches,[4] and the appropriation of their vacated properties.[5]
The Ottoman archives document that the Armenian deportations started as early as March 2, 1915.[6] After the expiration of the Tehcir Law, deportations and massacres continued. On September 13, 1915, the Ottoman parliament passed the "Temporary Law of Expropriation and Confiscation," stating that all property, including land, livestock, and homes belonging to Armenians, was to be confiscated by Ottoman authorities.[7]
Before the Ottoman parliament implemented the "Tehcir Law", there was a circular byTalaat Pasha.[8][a] According to Talaat Pasha, a law passed on 11 February 1915 allowed for parliament to go into an early recess on March 1, but allowed the government to issue temporary laws in their absence.[10] In the night of April 24, 1915, Talaat, who was theminister of interior at the time, ordered250 Armenian intellectuals to be deported fromConstantinople.[11]
In May 1915, Mehmed Talaat Pasha requested that the Ottoman Cabinet and the thenGrand VizierSaid Halim Pasha legalize a measure for relocation and settlement of the Armenians to other places. Talaat's words were "the Armenian riots and massacres, which had arisen in a number of places in the country are a threat to national security."[12]
Tehcir Law was officially a "temporary" law that expired on February 8, 1916. Back It was acivil law, planned, implemented and enforced with an office (created by the law) to coordinate the activities under the name of "Migrant General Directorate" (Ottoman Turkish: Muhacirin Müdüriyet-i Umumîyesi). The civil law gave the military an enforcing power only if there were parties opposing the implementation. The rules and regulations of the law, as published in theTakvim-i Vekayi (Ottoman official newspaper), were public and they were shared with all the political parties.
One Ottoman Archival material, dated from July 12, 1915, suggests that massacres were part of those measures implemented against the Armenians.[14] The Turkish Martial Court supports this by referring to documents that claim that the main reason for the evacuation was annihilation.[15]
Although this law was directed against one particular ethnic group (theArmenians), the Assyrian population of the Ottoman Empire also fell victim as did some otherChristians from the East.[16]
In the text of the law, there is no explicit mention of theArmenian Question, and the text contains that: (1) the ill, (2) the blind, (3) Catholics, (4) Protestants, (5) the soldiers and their families, (6) the officers, (7) merchants, some workers and masters were not subject to evacuation. If conditions got worse, these groups are ordered to be settled in the city centers.[17]
Capitulations of the Ottoman Empire granted missionaries a protectorate state (see:Protectorate of missions). There is a group of rules that grant rights to missionaries under the Ottoman Empire. Another decipher orders theCatholic Armenian missionaries not to leave the Ottoman Empire until the next order.[18] This message was not respected in some centers, such asMaraş andKonya.[19]
The law included a responsible party for the protection of properties the owners could/will return in a later term.[20] Another law was passed to regulate the enforcement of this section On 10 June 1915.[21] In this section, it was demanded that there would be three copies of this information; one kept in the regional churches, one in the regional administration, and one kept by the commission responsible for the execution of the law. The second and third parties of this law were held responsible for the protection of the properties until the immigrants' return.[20][22]
While the law was allegedly temporary, the Ottomans' main motivation was to settle theArmenian question once for all, therefore permanently. Kamuran Gurun has released archival material fromEnver Pasha, the Minister of War, that provides the aim of passing the law. In that letter Enver takes it as permanent and not temporary with the aim of fixing the Armenianproblem once and for all.[23]
While it is claimed that the debts of the evacuated population were to be completely canceled, and recurring tax debts (property tax) of the Armenians were to be postponed until their supposed return,[24] the Armenian properties were seized by the government, sold or given to the Muslim residents or immigrants.[5] A significant amount of money made from the sale of the seized properties was transferred and secured in Berlin.[25]
A fund was initiated with the law. The control of the fund was assigned to director Şükrü Bey, a directorate under the immigrants general office (Immigrant and Tribe Settling). He was accused of complicity during the courts-martial in the destruction of the Armenian population. Also considered to maintain the link between the Ittihadists and the Special Organization. From the documents:
| Budget for the Tehcir June 1, 1915 to February 8, 1916 | |
|---|---|
| İzmit province | 150,000 kuruş |
| Eskişehir | 200,000 kuruş |
| Angora Vilayet | 300,000 kuruş |
| Konya Vilayet | 400,000 kuruş |
| Adana Vilayet | 300,000 kuruş |
| Aleppo Vilayet | 300,000 kuruş |
| Mosul Vilayet | 500,000 kuruş |
| Syria Vilayet | 100,000 kuruş |
| Total | 2,250,000 kuruş |
Also, the Ottoman government under the international agreements assigned within the capitulations, enabled fund transfers using the missionaries and consuls. Armenian immigrants from the United States sent funds, which were distributed to the Armenians under the knowledge of the government by these institutions.[26] TheAmerican Near East Relief Committee, a relief organization for refugees in the Middle East, helped donate over $102 million to Armenians both during and after the war.[27]
The funds within the provinces aided the immigrants, whose money allocations were sent under provincial budgets depending on the condition of needs.[citation needed] The Ottomans, however, barred humanitarian aid from reaching the starving Armenian population.[citation needed]
The law was repealed on February 21, 1916,[28] with an order sent to all Ottoman provinces, while the destruction of the Armenian population continued. Claimed political detainees continued to be displaced to theDer Zor province.[29] All the activities finalized on March 15, 1916.[30]
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These commissions are to determine Armenian properties in the villages and towns that are evacuated, and to keep detailed record books. One of the books is to be kept in the regional churches, one to be submitted to the regional administration, and one shall be kept by the commission. Non-durable goods and animal stock shall be auctioned and the money shall be kept. In location where a commission is not appointed, the provisions of the communiqué shall be enforced by the officers in the regions. Both the commission and the regional administrators shall be responsible for the protection of these properties until theArmenians return.[permanent dead link]
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