Lebanon’s Armenian family kept Türkiye’s appreciation letter for 84 years

By Idris Okuducu

BEIRUT (AA) - An 83-year-old Armenian-born Vartanus Gokceoglu traveled to Lebanon from Hatay with his family in 1945, where he preserved the letter of appreciation given to his grandfather in 1938 for working in favor of Türkiye against France.

Gokceoglu, born in the Kirikhan district of Hatay, stated that his family immigrated to Lebanon legally in 1945.

Gokceoglu told Anadolu Agency the story of his father, who was imprisoned by the French for working for Türkiye.

He stated that his grandfather, Kirkor Gogceyan, was the head of the court in Hatay and his brother was a gendarme, while his father, Artin, and his other two uncles, Armisk and Sarkis, were contractors.

Gokceoglu said, "My family's construction company employed about 100-150 workers."

"The French imprisoned my father for 7 months for working for Türkiye. My father loved Türkiye, we had a house in Hatay where we hid 100 government horses when needed. At that time, an important official was on his way from Istanbul to Hatay, but due to bad weather, he had to stay over, so my grandfather hid him and those accompanying him for 15 days," he stated.

Gokceoglu has been keeping the letter of appreciation dated September 2, 1938, for 84 years. The letter included the signature and seal of the President of Kirikhan People's Party and Community Center, which was presented to the Gokceoglu family for siding with Türkiye against the French.

Gokceoglu said, "My sister was around 10 years old at the time when she came to Lebanon from Türkiye. She took this letter from my grandfather and we have been keeping it since."

Gokceoglu stressed that the letter is a "valuable deed" that he will preserve.

The letter states, "Gogceyen Kirker and his three sons Artin, Armisk and Sarkis, Armenian-speaking Hatay citizens residing in Kirikhan, have been working for Türkiye since 1936. The service they have shown, especially at the time of the elections, is extremely appreciated. They have worked with the Turks until the end."

- Identity card

Gokceoglu said, "My wife's family moved to Lebanon from Ankara during the mobilization period. She was born in Lebanon and holds Lebanese citizenship. That was not the case for me. I had to get official documents from Türkiye to get married."

"I still keep the identity card that I brought with me from Türkiye when I came to Lebanon. My marriage certificate came from Türkiye as well," Gokceoglu added.

- I want to get my Turkish passport again

Gokceoglu stated that his family had never forgotten Kirikhan and regretted coming to Beirut.

"I want to get my Turkish citizenship and passport again. I love Türkiye very much and even though I grew up in Lebanon, I believe that Türkiye is my homeland," he added.

- I taught Turkish to all three of my children

Gokceoglu pointed out that he taught the Turkish language to all his three children and that "Turkish is always spoken at home."

"I want my two sons and daughter to be Turkish citizens, too," he stated.

- 91-year-old sister got a Turkish passport

Gokceoglu stated that he had 5 siblings but only his older sister, who lives in London, survived.

He explained that his older sister presented the letter addressed to her grandfathers to the Turkish Embassy in London, where they have started the official citizenship procedures.

"My sister received a Turkish passport," he added.

Gokceoglu stated that he had the opportunity to visit Türkiye 20 years ago for the first time after moving to Beirut in 1945, then for the second time in 2017.

Gokceoglu concluded, "I always wanted to go to Türkiye. I visited Istanbul in 2017, but I couldn't visit Kirikhan."

"I want to go to Kirikhan to see my hometown and I want to do so with a Turkish passport," he added.

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report