THE AGBU'S PROGRAMS AND THE GRADUAL DISAPPEARANCE OF THE REFUGEE CAMPS
For many refugees, Greece was no more than a way-station; their final destination lay elsewhere, often in France or Latin America. It is well known that countries such as Brazil or Argentina encouraged Armenian emigration; the Brazilian government even issued a much-publicized declaration inviting Armenian refugees to settle in Brazil.
Indeed, emigrants began leaving the Smyrna area for Brazil in 1922, even before the city’s Christian quarter was burned down.18 Other Armenians left Greece for Syria and Lebanon, where some had relatives, and where the refugees found slightly more favorable conditions. Arshag Alboyajian affirms that nearly a dozen Armenian refugees set sail for Syria or Lebanon every day.19
Armenian refugees in Greece did not, however, begin flocking to the Latin American countries until 1929, when the Greek authorities decided on the gradual demolition of the refugee camps in their country. This measure, which affected the broad mass of Armenian refugees, stimulated emigration: few Armenians had become Greek citizens, a circumstance that, to say the least, left them in an uncertain situation. For years, the AGBU’s central board had been receiving requests from Armenian refugees in Greece who wanted the organization to help them travel to Latin America.20 The Union had, however, adopted a strategy intended to prevent Armenian refugees from scattering too widely across the globe (which explains why these requests went unanswered). It sought to offer the refugees in Greece alternatives, such as settling in Soviet Armenia or establishing permanent homes in residential neighborhoods in Greece.
The information reaching the central board in Paris in 1931 clearly indicated that the depression and ... Read all
Greece and Armenian Refugees
An Armenian refugee camp in Athens in the early 1930s (Coll. Bibl. Nubar/Paris).