‘How was the Armenian church demolished despite the protection order?’

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Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Diyarbakır MP Garo Paylan has submitted a Parliamentary question regarding the demolition of the Surp Toros Church despite being designated as an "Immovable Requiring Protection" by the Kütahya Regional Board of Cultural Heritage Protection.

The historical Armenian church in Turkey's western province of Kütaya has been destroyed after it came into the possession of a person.

CLICK - Surp Toros Church in Kütahya demolished

Submitting a Parliamentary question to the Speaker's Office to be addressed to Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, HDP MP Paylan has briefly stated the following about the issue:

"Dating back to 1603, the church had an important place in the city's memory. The church was considered to be an important site of memory as it was the church where musicologist Gomidas was baptized.

"The church was lastly used as a wedding hall and a movie hall; the authorities remained indifferent to the Armenian community's calls for its restoration or, at least, its use as a cultural center."

Paylan has also referred to the remarks of Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who said, "We did not, do not and will not interfere with the belief, worship or the sacred of anyone."

Paylan has noted that "this demolition, despite Erdoğan's remarks, has deeply saddened and hurt all Christians, especially the Armenian citizens."

Accordingly, Paylan has asked the Minister the following questions:

• How was the Kütahya Surp Toros Armenian Church demolished despite the protection order?
• Has an investigation been launched against the person who demolished the church?
• Has an investigation been launched against the public officials who made way for the demolition of the church under protection?
• Why do you remain silent to the destruction of Armenians' cultural heritage?
• Will you take any action to ensure that the church will be rebuilt to its original?

What happened?

After the Surp Toros Church in Turkey's Aegean province of Kütahya passed into the ownership of a person, it has been completely destroyed. There is now a flat ground in the place of the historical church.

As reported by Agos newspaper, local sources said that they went to the place where the church was located upon hearing that it was demolished. When they went there, what they saw was a plain ground.

The church has recently come into the possession of a person. It is now believed that the demolition was done upon the decision of this person. 

Armenians in Kütahya and Surp Toros Church

Before 1915, around 4 thousand Armenians used to live in Turkey's western province of Kütahya. There were three Armenian churches and three Armenian schools under their umbrella.

Two of the churches (Surp Asdvadzadzin and Surp Toros) were Armenian Orthodox and one was Armenian Catholic (Surp Asdvadzin).

According to the census in 1931 in the Republican era, there remained only 65 Armenians and one Armenian church open to worship. This number dropped further amid migration to İstanbul and abroad until 1970; then, there remained no Armenians or Armenian churches in the province.

The Surp Toros Church is believed to have been constructed during the time of Sultan Abdul Aziz. While the church was burned down during an insurrection in 1603, it was rebuilt after a short time. Writer Arşag Alboyacıyan recounts that there is a rock in the church which is believed to have the horseshoe marks of Saint Toros on it. "Turkish women used to sit on this rock and make the clergy read them the holy book," he has noted.

The church was used as a movie hall for some time and as a wedding hall afterwards. The building was licensed as an Immovable Requiring Protection as per the decision 5407 of the Kütahya Regional Board of Cultural Heritage Protection on August 27, 2019. (HA/SD)