Yekta K NOYAN

COLONIALISM, GERMAN EXPERIENCE AND THE REFLECTIONS ON HISTORY

Almanların sömürgeci deneyimi diğerlerine kıyasla az çalışılmış bir alandır. (Bunun nedeni) Her şeyden önce bu konu kısa bir zaman zarfını kapsar. İkincisi, Nazi Almanya'sına verilen genel önemin diğer dönemlerin önüne geçmiş olmasıdır. Alman sömürgeci yönetiminin ani bitişinin sebebi İngilizlerce, Alman İmparatorluğu'nun yerel halkı ve yabancı toprakları yönetmedeki tecrübesizliği olarak öne sürülmüştür. Ancak, Steinmetz bize Alman İmparatorluğu'nun 'sömürgeci devlet yönetimi' konusunda tecrübeli olduklarını gösterir. Nitekim bu yazı Alman sömürgeciliğine, onun kökenlerine, hareket şekline ve doğurduğu etkilere odaklanmaktadır. Bunu yapabilmek için, önce genel olarak sömürgeciliğin doğası araştırılmakta, sonrasında Alman sömürgeci mirasının kökeni ve gelişimi hakkında sorular sorulmaktadır. Sömürgeciliği, Alman tarihini, Holokost ve soykırım çalışmalarını kapsayan, Meinig'in kronolojik çerçevesine eklemeler yapan karma bir yöntem kullanan disiplinlerarası bir üslupla, Holokost'tan çok daha önce soykırım araçlarının Alman İmparatorluk Ordusu'nun kullanımına açık olduğunu önermekteyim. Buna bağlı olarak, ulusal itibar ve küresel hâkimiyetin tehdit altında olduğu algılandığında, Alman toplumunun belirli kesimleri, olağanüstü vahşeti ve belki de soykırımı onaylamıştır. Çeşitli teorik tefsirleri sunduktan sonra çalışma, Alman Güneybatı Afrika'sı üzerinden, vaka incelemesi yaklaşımını benimser. Bunun sonucunda, makale günümüzde akademik calismalara konu olan Alman sömürgeciliği ve bunun Holokost ile bağlantısı tartismasina katkida bulunacaktir.

SÖMÜRGECİLİK, ALMANYA'NIN DENEYİMLERİ VE TARİHE YANSIMALARI

The German colonialist experience is relatively a less studied area. First of all, it occupies relatively a short span of time. Second, the general emphasis on the Third Reich eclipses other periods. In the aftermath of the abrupt ending of German colonial rule, the British even argued that the German Empire was inexperienced when it came to ruling indigenous populations and foreign lands.1 However, as Steinmetz shows German Empire was experienced in "colonial statecraft."2 Thus, this paper focuses on German colonialism, its roots, course of action and pertinent repercussions. In order to do so, it initially investigates the nature of colonialism in general and then raises questions on the origins and the development of the German colonial legacy in particular. In an interdisciplinary fashion that encompasses colonialism, German history, the Holocaust, and genocidal studies and through a hybrid form of methodology that introduces modifications to the Meinig's chronological framework3, I posit that genocidal tools had been available to the German Imperial Army long before the Holocaust. Consequently, when national prestige and global hegemony were perceived to be threatened, certain segments of the German society approved extreme brutality, and perhaps genocide. After presenting various theoretical interpretations, the study adopts a case-study approach through German South West Africa. Consequently, the essay will be unfolding a problem presented by recent scholarly works: debate on German colonialism and its link to Holocaust.

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ISSN: 1306-9136
Yayın Aralığı: 1
Başlangıç: 2006
Yayıncı: Terazi Yayıncılık Basım Dağıtım Danışmanlık Eğitim Organizasyon Matbaacılık Kırtasiye Tic. Ltd. Şti.