Descendant of Armenian Genocide survivor seeks to reclaim inherited but lost estate in Turkey

A 90-year-old Armenian woman from the city of Gyumri, a descendant of Armenian Genocide survivors, hopes that someday justice will be restored and she will be able to reclaim her mother’s property that was to be inherited to her according to the will. She said she would donate the assets to children's care and elderly care centers. 

Araksi Demirchyan told Armenpress that she wants to return the property recorded in her mother Mariam Khachikyan-Demirchyan’s will. She expressed hope that eventually the Armenian Genocide will be universally recognized. “Let the world know what we have lost and what justice we’ve been seeking for so long,” she told Armenpress.

Araksi Demirchyan was born in Syria to a family hailing from Kharberd, an Armenian populated town in Ottoman Empire. Her grandmother, Martha Kachikyan, having lost her husband during the Armenian Genocide, escaped to Aleppo with her daughters. In 1929, Martha officially appealed to the Aleppo vilayet authorities, requesting to restore her rights for the real estate they left behind in Turkey. Despite having all required documents the case was not solved. 

In 1946 the Demirchyan family repatriated to Armenia. “I was nine when we came to Armenia. We were happy to come here, we knew this was our home. We’ve always heard that Armenians must live in their homeland,” Araksi Demirchyan said, adding that her family never regretted moving to Armenia.

She said that the Armenian-translated version of her mother’s will is now kept at the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute. She showed Armenpress the original document kept in a small box at her home in Gyumri. The will shows that her family's Kharberd estate was worth a total of 18,000 Turkish liras as of 1929. 

“This box contains my family’s entire past. I found it after my mother’s death while going through her clothes. When the documents were translated, I realized what kind of a huge property we had lost,” Araksi Demirchyan said.

Over the years she appealed to many organizations both in Armenia and abroad and even visited Turkey to meet with lawyers, but no practical steps were taken. “I have sent a letter to the Armenian National Committee office. I have made a deal with God, I won’t die until I have returned those assets. As soon as I reclaim it, I will donate it to orphanages and elderly care centers. It is my duty,” she added.