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All Turkey Kars Monument to Humanity, Kars
Monument to Humanity, Kars is permanently closed.

This entry remains in the Atlas as a record of its history, but it is no longer accessible to visitors.

Monument to Humanity, Kars

Unfinished monument to peace between Turkey and Armenia, long divided by a dispute over genocide.

Kars, Turkey

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Nick Jackson
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  http://peace.maripo.com/x_middle_east.htm
  http://peace.maripo.com/x_middle_east.htm
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Naif Alibeyoglu, a former mayor of Kars, Turkey, decided in 2006 to build a giant sculpture as a peace gesture from Turkey to Armenia. But opposition to the structure, led by Oktay Aktas, the local head of the Nationalist Action Party (MHP), prevailed. "Why is one figure standing with its head bowed, as if ashamed?" Aktas asked, despite the fact that both figures are standing entirely erect, implying that his native Turkey was submitting to Armenian powers. "Turkey has nothing to be ashamed of." Aktas vowed to destroy the monument saying, “I said I would smash the statue down with my own hands, and I will.”

His vow turned out to be unnecessary, as his group was able to halt the building, and, as of 2010, the 100-foot-tall sculpture still sits unfinished, surrounded by wooden scaffolding, with no plans to ever be completed. A hand sits in the gravel at the base of the sculpture and is the most photographed piece here, as it seems to represent the continuing struggle between the two countries. Called the "Hand of Friendship," the hand was meant to join the two human figures once completed.

Turkey's border with Armenia was closed in 1993 when Turkey broke off diplomatic ties, backing Azerbaijan in a dispute over a piece of land between the two countries at the time. Since, the two countries have continued to trade with each other, and their foreign ministers meet with some regularity. Divided for generations by a dispute over genocide in the early 20th century, relations between Turkey and Armenia have always been difficult.

It looks like the "Hand of Friendship" may remain empty for quite some time.

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Added By

nbj914

Published

August 16, 2010

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Sources
  • BBC: "Refusing the hand of friendship" (November 2008): http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7754218.stm
  • The Wall Street Journal: Turkey Sidesteps Obstacle to Armenia Pact" (October 2009): http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB125486375834268801.html
  • Eurasianet: "Armenia and Turkey: As Reconciliation Process Moves Forward, Kars Monument Fuels Controversy" (October 2009): http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insightb/articles/eav101609.shtml
  • Peace Monuments in the Middle East: http://peace.maripo.com/x_middle_east.htm
  • http://www.vagabond.bg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1678:kars&catid=90:turkey
Monument to Humanity, Kars
Kars
Turkey
40.59267, 43.077831
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Photo of Turkey

Turkey

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Stories 21

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