Assyrians/Syriacs are being robbed of property they have owned for thousands of years

At the beginning of the 21st century Assyrians began to apply for entry into the land register for their rightful land in Turabdin. Many Assyrians have been in the villages and tried to get their properties registered at the Turkish surveying office. This work, which Turkish authorities described as the opportunity to secure their properties, turned out to be a big bluff.

Today, big land areas that are owned by Assyrians in Turabdin, have been registered (confiscated) by the government?s forest authority, so called Hazine. Although the surveying office has the task to run the registrations for free, it has taken tens of thousands Euros to get the work done.

Besides that a considerable part of the villages? lands have been registered on the government. The reason is said to be that the lands have not been cultivated and for that they have been classified as forestland. According to the Turkish law all forestland goes to the government.

Today, many land areas belonging to the villagers of Enhil have been announced for sale. The paradox in this is that land that has been classified as forestland, and thus is not allowed to be owned by a private person, is suddenly for sale to exactly private persons.

This is an unpleasant surprise that will also happen to other villages in Turabdin.

Enhil was the first village in Turabdin that registered their properties at the surveying office.

Because of that it is the first victim for the Turkish authorities ?legal? confiscation of land that our people has owned for thousands of years.

This incident is identical with what happened during the years after Seyfo (The Assyrian Genocide), when the Christians were eliminated through mass murder or deportations and then accused for not using and cultivating their land. With support of the government?s lawful rights the land areas were confiscated and sold further to Muslims.  

Assyrians who have fled from Turabdin because of the war conditions that prevailed in the area are now obliged to give up their land areas since they didn?t have the opportunity to cultivate and use their land because of their absence.

Turkey is now in negotiations for a European Union membership. Despite this, the Turkish government hasn?t been stopped from oppressing Assyrians and confiscate their properties. Confiscation of citizens? properties in the name of the law is against the European Unions principles of ownership and protection for private property.

In similarity with Nazi Germany during the Second World War, Turkey is today in some ways a government, were laws and rules are created by people who have been elected.  Yet their laws are of the worst kind. In similarity with the Nazi race laws whose purpose was to steal the Jewish people?s properties, the Turkish laws are not at all different today in the year 2006.

These laws refer to and rest on the racist ideology that says that Turks have the right to everything in Turkey! Like a simple thief, the Turkish state steals our land.

Stockholm, march 08, 2006

Dikran Ego

? 2006, EasternStar New Agency