The Assassination of Hrant Dink

[Helen]

Dink was 1.5 million + 1 man...

[Gavur]

Interesting articles at www.agos.com.tr/eng

[Joseph]

We shall see

HEAVY SENTENCES SOUGHT OVER ARMENIAN DINK'S MURDER

Middle East Times, Egypt
May 7 2007

ISTANBUL -- Turkish prosecutors sought heavy prison terms for 18
people over the murder of an ethnic Armenian journalist that they
said was the work of a terrorist organization, the Anatolia news
agency reported Monday.

The trial is expected to start July 2, the semi-official agency said.

Hrant Dink's murder January 19 raised alarm about rising nationalism
and hostility against minorities in Turkey. The journalist's funeral
turned into a huge demonstration as some 100,000 people marched behind
his coffin, calling for tolerance and reconciliation with Armenia.

The indictment calls for life sentences for two alleged ringleaders
who instigated the killing in which Dink, 52, was gunned down outside
the offices of his Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos in Istanbul.

One of them, university student Erhan Tuncel, also faces an additional
prison term between 22.5 and 48 years on other charges including
being a leader of a terrorist organization.

The indictment calls for an additional sentence of 18 to 30 years
in jail for the second man, Yasin Hayal, on other charges including
being a leader of a terrorist organization.

Hayal is believed to have provided the money and gun used in the
murder.

The two prosecutors demanded a prison term between 18 and 24 years
for Ogun Samast, a 17-year-old jobless secondary school graduate who
confessed to shooting Dink.

Samast also faces an additional prison term of between 8.5 to 18
years for being a member of a terrorist organization and carrying an
unlicensed gun.

The indictment calls for prison terms between 7.5 and 35 years for
the remaining 15 suspects for helping in the murder.

The prosecutors considered the group as a terrorist organization,
which aggravates the sentences sought for the crime.

Most of the suspects are from the Black Sea city of Trabzon - a bastion
of nationalism - and are believed to have targeted Dink for his views
on the World War I killings of Armenians under Ottoman rule.

Dink described the 1915-18 killings as genocide, a label that Turkey,
the Ottoman Empire's successor, categorically rejects.

Nationalists branded him a traitor after he was given a suspended
six-month jail sentence last year for "insulting Turkishness."

One of the charges brought against Hayal was related to him threatening
Turkish Nobel-winning novelist Orhan Pamuk, who was also charged
over remarks about the Armenian massacres, but escaped trial thanks
to a technicality.

Dink, one of the most prominent members of Turkey's tiny Armenian
minority, was widely respected as a sincere campaigner for reconciling
Turkey and Armenia, which have failed to establish diplomatic ties
over the genocide dispute.

[bell-the-cat]

Turkey and Armenia, which have failed to establish diplomatic ties
over the genocide dispute.

Wrong, of course.
Turkey has refused to establish diplomatic ties with Armenia because of the war between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

I wonder in whose interest it is for that alternative, false reason to be continually propagated.

[Gavur]

Nothing less then Capital punishment should be acceptable,If they want to disprove association with hired murderers.

[Gavur]

Wrong, of course.
Turkey has refused to establish diplomatic ties with Armenia because of the war between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

I wonder in whose interest it is for that alternative, false reason to be continually propagated.

There's a new breed of journalist's out there, their only qualification seems to be reading the book "1 Minute Journalists"

[Joseph]

IN RESPONSE TO THREATS ADDRESSED TO HIM HRANT DINK SAID: "WHAT IS WRIT LARGE ON ONE'S FACE THAT WILL HAPPEN"

Noyan Tapan
May 15 2007

INSTANBUL, MAY 15, NOYAN TAPAN - ARMENIANS TODAY. The Turkish press
continues publishing interesting information concerning the case of
Agos weekly editor-in-chief Hrant Dink's murder.

According to Hurriyet, about 4 months before Dink's murder two unknown
people, presenting themselves as policemen, examined the yard-keeper
of the editorial office building, attempting to find out how many
children Dink had, where was at the moment and if the yard-keeper
knew other people close with his family. Then the latter's religious
belonging was defined, and getting to know that he was a Moslem,
they asked if he knew that Hrant Dink wrote in his articles that the
Turk's blood must be cleaned by the Armenian's blood. "And at the end
those people told me: "Tell Dink to become reasonable, we shall not
allow him live for a long time, we shall kill." "And I informed the
editor-in-chief about it but he told me: "Do not be afraid, what is
writ large on one's face that will happen." And, as I informed Hrant
Dink and the building manager about it, I did not think at all about
addressing to the police," the yard-keeper said.

[Steph]

Agos newspaper carries on the Hrant Dink legacy
Wednesday, May 16,2007

Agos editor-in-chief Hrant Dink and his team established the newspaper and published it in Turkish, bringing the Armenian community and the Turkish public closer

NIKI GAMM
ISTANBUL - Turkish Daily News

The Armenian world, the Turkish world, Agos newspaper and a family suffered a loss with the killing of Agos editor-in-chief, Hrant Dink, on April 19, 2007. One could argue that he was irreplaceable, intellectually gifted, thoughtful and clear-sighted - qualities that are sadly missed in difficult times.

Agos is an Armenian newspaper that is now 11 years old. The name refers to the hole one digs before planting crops or flowers in the soil. The paper with a current circulation of 10,000 (up from 5,000 just prior to Dink's death) is published once a week and openly proclaims that it is a political newspaper. Three of the 24 pages are in Armenian instead of the previous two and the rest is in Turkish. It actually started its publishing life with eight pages, two in Armenian and six in Turkish and rose to 24 pages following its editor-in-chief's murder. The section on Armenian culture has been expanded to six pages.

Dink's death is the last in a long line of such attacks that started with the murder of Serbesti newspaper chief columnist Hasan Fehmi Bey on April 6, 1909. In the last 98 years 61 journalists have lost their lives in Turkey. Turkish Press Council Chairman Oktay Eksi is among those who have been targeted but managed to escape being assaulted only at the last minute. Eksi said to the Turkish Daily News that this works out to one journalist being killed in Turkey every year and a half.

The first Agos newspaper appeared on April 5, 1996 and it was a new and radical voice for the Armenian community. Its most important aspect was to be a newspaper that explained Turkish Armenians. Until this newspaper appeared, Turkish Armenians were a community that shut themselves to the rest of society. Nor Marmara and Jamanak newspapers were published only in Armenian. Dink and his team established Agos newspaper and published it in Turkish, bringing the Armenian community and the Turkish public closer.

Dink was a good leftist, a good revolutionary and this was reflected in the newspaper. That is, Agos became a leftist, revolutionary newspaper and from time to time his identity as a revolutionary and laic journalist even superceded his Armenian identity. Dink was not only against the official line on Turkish-Armenian relations or the alleged Armenian genocide but he was also opposed to the official line on many subjects such as the Kurds, Alevis, religion-state relations and the headscarf. In his articles however, he emphasized that he wanted every ethnic community in Turkey to live in peace.

Dink wrote for Birgun and Zaman newspapers as well as Agos and was to begin writing for the Turkish Daily News the week he died. The American journalist and writer, Steven Kinzer, once said to Dink �You have turned into a heroic journalist.� To which Dink replied, �I understand and I am not stopping.�

For a short time after Dink died, artists and intellectuals bought copies of Agos in order to help the newspaper. It continues publication today, headed by editor-in-chief Etiyen Mahcupyan assisted by Aydin Engin, Baskin Oran and Ali Bayramoglu and it still follows the ground rules established by Dink. Agos will continue trying to offer unbiased news and commentaries based on the information it obtains.

[Gavur]

Rakel Dink calls on Turkish PM to speed up trial process

17 May 2007
More than a dozen suspects have been detained in connection with Dink’s slaying.

http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/news/408322.asp

ISTANBUL - The wife of murdered Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, has said she does not want to see the death of her husband turned into a cover up.
In a letter sent to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan Rakel Dink said she was concerned at the slow pace of the investigation and judicial processes surrounding the case of her husband’s murder.

Hrant Dink was gunned down outside his Istanbul office on January 19, after receiving numerous death threats from nationalist and right wing groups.

Though more than a dozen persons have been taken into custody, including a 17 year old youth accused of shooting Dink, the investigation into the attack is continuing.

Rakel Dink called on Erdogan to appoint a prime ministry inspection council to investigate case in detail.

[1.5 million]

I'm sure her pleas will be well recieved (not). She (& others) need to petition European Human Rights groups to make this an issue and press Turkey hard on it (and vow consequences if it is covered up etc)...and of course they and European Governments (and maybe eventually the next US government...when/if we ever get one that cares) should not let this drop either...