Fethiye Çetin

Fethiye Çetin (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈfethiːje ˈtʃetin]) (born in Maden, Elazığ Province is a Turkish lawyer, writer and human rights activist.

Her grandmother was born namely Heranuş Gadaryan in the small town of Maden,to an Armenian parents Hovannes and Isguhi Gadaryan.^[1] Çetin's maternal grandmother, Seher, would later reveal that she was by birth an Armenian Christian who had been taken away from her mother on a death march in the course of the Armenian Genocide and adopted by a Turkish military official, Huseyin Cavus, who was unable to have children; this legacy inspired Çetin's first book, a recounting of her grandmother's story in the memoir entitled My Grandmother.^[2] The book, translated into English by Maureen Freely,^[1] has become demanded reading piece at some progressive Turkish institutes of higher education, such as Sabancı University.^[3] Today's Zaman characterises the book as "part of a trend in Turkey that is grappling with a historic denial of Armenian slaughter during 1915s, nationalism and fears of political consequences" in regards to "the lost Armenians".^[3]

As a lawyer, Çetin has been representing the family of the murdered Turkish-Armenian newspaper editor Hrant Dink.[3]

In September 2010 Fethiye Cetin visited Australia as an invited guest to a public discussion in a Sydney bookstore, about her novel 'My Grandmother'. She also went to Melbourne as an invited guest to the Melbourne Writers' Festival. For an overview and analysis of her visit, see http://livre-sk65.blogspot.com/.

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