CIRCASSIAN GENOCIDE

May 21, 1864 THE DAY OF REMEMBRANCE

                                                “Wu Adiga ba” – “Are you not Circassian?”

I was reading an exceptional book about Caucasian people, their tragic history, the never-ending wars with the Russians to protect their land, their way of lives and their freedom with an utmost heartfelt sadness. The book entitled, Let Our Fame Be Great, Journeys Among the Defiant People of the Caucasus was written by British writer and investigative reporter Oliver Bullough, who studied modern history at Oxford University and specialized in Russian history and politics. 

I was transfixed with the many aspects of this beautifully written book, especially the everlasting and ingrained aspects of Circassian’s culture and traditions of its people. When Mr. Bullough was visiting a Circassian village in today’s Israel, his account about an interaction between a Circassian father and his crying little boy, saying,”wu Adiga ba  - are you not Circassian?” made me remember my childhood and I started to cry. My late father used to tell me the same things. He used to tell me, “A true Circassian man must never cry, must never express fear, anger and frustrations, must always be respectful to his elders, and stand up in their presence, must never shout or raise his hand against a girl or woman. Your ancestors are watching you from their graves, you never want to disturb their spirits with your behavior.”

I confess, I didn’t know much about Russian atrocities and cruel Circassian genocide, neither the civilized world, nor the present nations that inhabit their land, where all these things happened. It is very appalling that all the civilized world ignored the Tzarist Russian’s savagery, slaughter and genocide of Circassian people living in the mountains of Caucasus.  Even though this genocide was crueler, lasting longer in pain and suffering of the peoples, including not only women, elderly and children, but also all their animals they have depended on as their food source.

After defeating them, Russians forced exodus on entire Circassian nation from their native homeland to the far corners of Ottoman Empire in 1864.They crammed people into leaky boats, ferried them away across the stormy Black Sea without any food, clothing or protection, to die from hunger, cold and diseases. It is estimated that between 300,000 - 500,000 people perished on their way to the open beaches of a declining Ottoman Empire. Even more people died there waiting before the old empire found a place for them to live. The lands offered to them were poor and infertile, lands that nobody else wanted. Circassians were dispersed everywhere- to Turkey, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Kosava and then later on to the many countries of the world. That is how the great Circassian diaspora came to existence.

Russians successfully covered up their atrocities, savagery, slaughters and genocide from the entire world. It was believed that the story of Caucasian peoples, their different religions, culture and languages were too far away, too complex, and too unimportant for them to understand and to pay any attention.

Yet many, including myself, know much more about the Armenian genocide and Jewish Holocaust because they are officially recognized as genocide by many nations, they always are in the front-page news, and are taught in schools as samples of inhumanity that should never be allowed to happen again. The biggest question every person with Caucasian heritage is facing right now should be, “what can I do? Is remembrance, condemnation and prayer enough?” 

I don’t think so. I am not an expert on these issues, but I think the followings should be done as well:

1-     May 21st should be firmly established as an official date of remembrance.

2-     Remembrance should also include the mobilization of the entire Circassian diaspora and all able bodies of Caucasian people to get together on yearly basis, at the place already established at the Turkish Black Sea port of Kefken, where hundreds of thousands of dead Circassians were dumped in the sea.

3-     A worthy monument of remembrance should erected at the same spot.

4-     Remembrance ceremonies should include prayers for their souls, cultural events, music, folk- dances, lectures, songs, poetry, history and more.

5-     Remembrance of Circassian genocide should be front page news for the other world nations to notice.