Documented case of cultural genocide.

AZG Armenian Daily #002, January 12 2005

TURKISH SINGER DISTORTS "ADANA LAMENTATION", A SONG DEVOTED TO GENOCIDE

She Calls this Sacrilege a Wish to Talk of Genocide

The first song of Turkish singer Seden Gurel’s "Bir Kadın Şarkı Sylyor" album (2004) is the Armenian song known as "Adana Lamentation" devoted to the massacres of Adana’s Armenian population in 1909. In her album "Adana Lamentation" turned into a love song titled "Sebebim Aşk" – "The Reason is Love".

Sibel Alas is the author of the words, and Istanbul Armenian Shirak Shahrikian’s duduk accompanies the song. The latter’s participation in this sacrilege aroused the indignation of the Armenian community in Istanbul. Shahrikian wrote an article in Turkish for www.bolsahays.com Armenian website trying to justify himself where he says that the Armenians’ disapproval was expressed by numerous phone calls. Seden Gurel, in her turn, wrote a letter in September of 2004 where she tries to convince that the aim of the song was to tell the Turkish people of the Genocide (Gurel used the word "soykırım" – genocide – thus recognizing the Armenian genocide).

It’s hard to say how the Turkish society learns about the Armenian Genocide by listening to "The Reason is Love". The song was broadcasted by one of Turkish state TV channels on April 24 with the accompaniment of semi-naked Turkish women’s dance.

The song’s video clipping is available at http://www.sedengurel.com/video/sebebimask.zip .

Russian version

Armenian version

Below is the Turkish lyrics translated into Armenian: