Monument to Humanity

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Armenian. (July 2016) Click [show] for important translation instructions. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Armenian Wikipedia article at [[:hy:Մարդկության հուշարձան]]; see its history for attribution. You may also add the template {{Translated|hy|Մարդկության հուշարձան}} to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

Monument to Humanity (Turkish: İnsanlık Anıtı, [Մարդկության հուշարձան] Error: {{Langx}}: invalid parameter: |Mardkut'yan hushardzanlit= (help)) was a nearly completed statue in Kars, Turkey. Created by Turkish artist Mehmet Aksoy, the 30-metre-tall (98 ft) monument stood atop Kazıktepe, across from the ancient Castle of Kars. Visible from neighboring Armenia, the statue depicted two halves of a man, each reaching to hold the other's hand.^[1][2] The monument was demolished in April 2011, only months after being criticized by then–prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as a "freak"^[3] or "monstrosity".^[4]

The statue was commissioned by the Kars municipality as a gesture of reconciliation in Armenia–Turkey relations following the Zurich Protocols, a 2009 accord to establish formal diplomatic recognition between the two countries.^[4][5] Then–mayor of Kars, Naif Alibeyoğlu [tr], referred to the statue as "his dream," that would help bring together the "brothers and sisters" of the two nations.^[6]

However, the statue was also criticized, because it was erected without any consultation with the Armenian community, and represented a one-sided imposition rather than "reconciliation".^[7] Egemen Özbek writes:

the use of the blanket category "humanity" obscures crucial cultural and political differences between ethno-religious groups, and difference in responsibility for, and benefits from, the Armenian genocide... a commemorative project that does not engage with questions of historical responsibility, recognition, and justice runs the risk of eternalizing the post-genocide status quo which favors the Turkish position and reproduces an asymmetry of power, without recognizing historical wrongs committed against the Armenians.^[8]

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the monument as a "freak"^[3] or a "monstrosity" (Turkish: ucube) during a visit to Kars on 8 January 2011.^[4] In spite of protests, the city authority decided to remove the statue.^[3][5]

On 26 April 2011, demolition began with the dismounting of the sculpture's two heads, which Armenian sources considered effectively a decapitation.^[9] Aksoy also said "I felt as if my children were being beheaded."^[4] An official statement by the demolition company stated: "In order to dismantle it, first the head will be cut off and taken down with the help of a crane. Then, in the following ten days, the statue will be dismembered into 20 pieces."^[10] The demolition was completed on 14 June 2011.^[11]

While Erdoğan insisted that this was merely a question of aesthetics, international observers believed the demolition an attempt to appeal to nationalist sentiment ahead of the 2011 general election,^[12] concurring with Aksoy, who said Erdoğan was "maneuvering to consolidate his reactionary base in the run-up to elections," and that he "bagged the vote of local Azeris," who denounced extending a hand to Armenia.^[4]

As a response to Erdoğan's comments, Aksoy filed a lawsuit against Erdoğan for insulting him. Erdoğan's lawyer claimed it was a critique rather than an insult, but on 3 March 2015, an Istanbul court fined Erdoğan 10,000 Turkish lira for the insult, a ruling that was termed "a refreshing move by the Turkish judiciary" by oppositional commentator Sibel Hürtaş.^[4] However later on a local court overturned that verdict.^[13] Aksoy announced he would spend the money for a Nevruz Day party with his friends,^[14] thereby directing haram (Arabic for "immoral") money to its adequately haram purpose.^[4] In July 2019, the Constitutional Court ruled that its demolition violated Aksoy's freedom of expression and that he shall be compensated.^[15]

• Image gallery at Hürriyet
• Iğdır Genocide Memorial and Museum, the tallest standing monument in Turkey

40°36′39″N 43°05′10″E / 40.61083°N 43.08611°E / 40.61083; 43.08611