Dutch municipality of Enschede stops construction of Sayfo Genocide Monument over protest of Turkish community

ENSCHEDE, Netherlands — The municipality of Enschede in the Netherlands has stopped the construction of Sayfo Genocide monument in response to demands from Turkish organizations in the Netherlands and internal disagreements between Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) organizations over which national names should be included on the monument.

The Sayfo Genocide was committed by the Ottoman Empire and allied Kurdish, Arab, and Circassian forces in the early 20th century against the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) people and occurred parallel to the genocides of Armenians, Greeks, and Yezidis. Upwards of 300,000 of the region’s estimated 700,000 Syriacs (Arameans–Assyrians–Chaldeans) were massacred. More than 200,000 were forcefully displaced or deported south.

Following the municipality’s approval to erect a memorial honoring the martyrs of the Sayfo, clashes ensued between organizations representing the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) community people and those representing the Turkish community. There was also disagreement about the national names to be included on the monument.

Turkish organizations vehemently opposed the construction of the memorial within the city limits. In a concerted effort, they rallied in large numbers to persuade the municipality that a majority of residents objected to the monument’s placement, concurrently staging a demonstration against its construction.

The situation was not helped by the disagreement among the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) community about which national names should appear on the monument.

Consequently, the mayor of Enschede temporarily halted the project, leading to frustration and disappointment among the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) community over the project’s failure to materialize.

The Bethnahrin National Council (Mawtbo Umthoyo d’Bethnahrin, MUB) had previously underscored the importance of adopting a unified national name agreed upon by all, emphasizing the need to prevent divisions among the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) people.