No: 130, 24 April 2015

President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Joachim Gauck participated in a ceremony held in Berlin Cathedral on April 23^rd 2015, during which baseless allegations were directed towards Turkish identity, history and society.

Contrary to law and historical facts, President Gauck has not the right to attribute on the Turkish people a crime which they have not committed. It is expected from the authorities who represent social unity, integrity and harmony, to take the sensitivities of all the members of the society into consideration and express a more embracing approach. In this sense, it is astonishing that President Gauck has also disregarded the opinions of hundreds of thousands of Turkish-German citizens whom he also represents.

Turkish history and identity is an integral part of Turkish-German society. Members of this community will not remain silent against initiatives aimed at defaming their identity. Turkish nation will not forget and forgive President Gauck’s statements.

We hope that Bundestag, which plans to discuss a resolution on the events of 1915 in the forthcoming days, takes a neutral and constructive stance and does not present an approach which would have long term negative repercussions on Turkish-German relations.