土耳古共産黨首暗殺始末

Abstract

On the night of January 28/29, 1921, Mustafa Subhi and fourteen comrades were dumped overload to drown in the Black Sea off the coast of Trabzon. This crime which happened under mysterious circumstances has long been the subject of dispute. Who did induce or compel Subhi, the head of the newly established Turkish Communist Party, and his retinue of trusted companions to board a boat? Who was just ultimately responsible for this act? No one has ever untangled the mystery on present evidence. According to prevalent view, Yahya Kahya, the leader of the boatman guild, may have ordered to get rid of dangerous enemies. Many people has long believed this is most likely of all. During my stay in Ankara of 1984-85, I was able to have access to the Archives of the Turkish Historical Society and the Institute for the History of the Turkish Revolution. In the course of my study there, I could find some pieces of unpublished documents covering the mystery of Subhi's disappearance. Among those the most intriguing material is a letter dated upon May 14, 1921 to Halil Pasha at Tuapse from Kuciik Talat Bey who stayed at Trabzon in order to redouble his efforts secretly to extend Enver Pasha's organization inside Anatolia. In this heretofore-unknown letter, Kucuk Talat Bey explained that these communists were murdered under either tacit approval or encouragement of local authorities. Among others Hamid Bey, the Governor of Erzurum, acted on his own initiative. The local civilian and military authorities, even including a commander and the chief of the staff of the 3rd Division staying at Trabzon, should assume the responsibility for Subhi's death. Kucuk Talat Bey even listed names of those who were considered to be responsible for this crime. Most of them are composed of local notables belonging to Trabzon Branch of the Union of Defense of the National Rights of Anatolia and Rumelia.