1915-06-04-DE-001

English :: en de

(Dated 5 and 18 May) Johannes Ehmann, the parish priest in Mamuret-ul-Aziz (Harput) recently reported in-depth to the Imperial Embassy on the Armenian circumstances in those areas.

It is clear from his accounts that the Vali there, whom he describes as level-headed and benevolent, has succeeded in keeping the peace in Mamuret-ul-Aziz itself. The house searches and arrests which were carried out during the past few weeks appear not to have brought any particularly incriminating evidence to light. On the other hand, Ehmann cites from Turkish sources that dynamite was found in Egin and that the Armenians under the Kizilbash Kurds in the district of Dersim were making propaganda for an association with Russia. He seems to be of the Turks' opinion that "the Armenian people were against the Turks" and "that in case of a Russian invasion the Armenians in the interior would immediately go over to the enemy".

I would like to emphasize the following passage from Mr. Ehmann's further remarks – a man who gives the impression of being a level-headed and well-informed observer – which refers to the political associations of the Armenians; he writes,

The government is taking particularly harsh measures against the members of the “Dashnag” and “Hintchag” organisations, which, however, have been a blessing neither for the Turkish state nor for the Armenian people. In view of the conditions in the interior, which are completely immature for a constitutional nation, it might have been better if the Turkish state had never acknowledged them, and their dissolution would be gladly welcomed by even a large part of the Armenian people. But after they have once been acknowledged by the state, membership in such a party may not be branded a crime unless it can be proved that the individual organisation or the individual person has leanings and activities which threaten the security of the state or are rebellious.

Even so, the acquisition of permitted or forbidden weapons arose from a great short-sightedness, yes, an almost unforgivable stupidity, because it awoke the distrust of the Mohammedans and the government who imputed other intentions to the Armenians with regard to the acquisition of these weapons. Incidentally, for the past three or four years the enthusiasm for buying weapons has supposedly died down greatly, if not stopped altogether. [Marginal differences to the original document 1915-05-18-DE-003.]