Assassination Of Hrant Dink

[Aratta-Kingdom]

Reporters without borders - France

 

Press Release

Jan 30 2007

 

Despite reassuring statements from government officials, journalists

continue to be threatened and prosecuted

 

Reporters Without Borders today reiterated its call for the repeal of

article 301 of the criminal code punishing attacks on the Turkish

identity, as the country continued to be abuzz with protests and

reactions to the 19 January murder of newspaper editor Hrant Dink,

whose funeral on 23 January drew 100,000 mourners.

 

The editor of the bilingual Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, Dink had

been convicted under article 301 and was facing another prosecution

under the same article at the time of his death. Foreign minister

Abdullah Gül has said the article is clearly problematic and that

changes need to be made. While supporting his comments, Reporters

Without Borders believes the article should be completely repealed.

 

Gül's comment is not the first. Last November, a European Union

commission that is monitoring Turkey's progress towards joining the

EU stressed that: `Article 301 and other provisions of the Turkish

penal code that restrict freedom of expression need to be brought in

line with the European Convention of Human Rights.' Anticipating the

commission's comments, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan had

already appealed to civil society to suggest how the article could be

reformed.

 

`Despite that, nothing concrete has so far been initiated and for

this reason, we would like to stress today that promises are not

enough,' Reporters Without Borders said today.

[Stormig]

Of course. You guessed that I have not read the above turkey-droppongs in full. I don't need to.

If I may be allowed to summarize it all in one phrase…..“F*** em”!!

If they only could definitively define what a Turk is, as opposed to an Armenian. If they only show us what the so called Turkish identity, the (NOT)Turkish Language, between Arabic, Persian, Latin.. and… yes Armenian is, as opposed to ours, only then we may acknowledge that there in fact is a nation known as Turkish/F***ish.

http://hyeforum.com/index.php?s=&showt...st&p=185915

[Stormig]

Two weeks to the day...

The Tuesday that the funeral ceremony was, I watched the whole thing live. The ceremony in front of the Agos premises, in the church, and the burial... It was heart-wrenching to hear his wife Rakel give her speech. Even Mutafyan at one point had a hard time containing himself as he started the prayer part of his speech.

I don't believe in miracles, or marvels, but I was amazed with how one of the pigeons they had freed while the crowds waited for the clock to strike 11:00 ended up landing on the funerary carriage - and it stayed there for minutes on end despite the pressing presence of so many people. Cameras looked at it, turned elsewhere, came back to the pigeon, noted, "It's still there" and made some comments about how he had spoken of himself as a pigeon... Then at one point it had flown away, was gone. I couldn't believe my eyes. It was so meaningful, for loss of a better description, so touching, and I still haven't lost that feeling. Strange how no write-up has commented on it, how no photos are available. It was impossible not to notice. It just stayed there and looked "ahead," aligned with the vehicle's direction of advance. I hadn't been as moved before with a ceremony of a public figure.

[Yervant1]

AZG Armenian Daily #019, 02/02/2007

 

 

Hrant Dink Murder

 

ACCUSATIONS AGAINST THE PRIME MINISTER AND THE INNER

AFFAIRS MINISTER OF TURKEY IN CONNECTION WITH THE

MURDER OF HRANT DINK

 

During the process of Hrant Dink's murder

investigation 5 persons were detained, amaong which

was aslo Ogyun Samast, the murderer, Yasin Hayal, the

orderer and Erhan Tuncel, represented as an informer.

The "Eni Shafak", taking into consideration Tuncel's

rejection of its own evidence, rose a number of

questions - who are Tuncel's patrons, is he really a

mere informer or is he indeed a go-between the real

organizers of the murer and Hayal's criminal group.

During the investigation Prime Minister of Turkey

Erdogan dismissed the Trabzon region governor and the

Inner Affairs Minister of Turky. The Turkish press

reports that the actions of Istanbuls' and Am]kaara's

governors and local administrations will be also

examined. The "Motherland" party on January 30

declared its intention ro start z par;lamentary

investigation against Inner Affairs Ministyer

Abulkadir Asku. The party asked why the law enforcment

bodies, being informed about the threat against Dink's

life, took no measure for preventing the murder. On

janaury 31, National-Democratic Party followed the

example of "Motherland" and stated that the murder of

Hrant Dink discovered the serious problems of the

Turkish society and statehod, which cannot be solved

by dismissing a number statesmen. If 11 months on end

the state security services are being warned about a

murder preparations and do nothing, it is the

authorities to deal with, said the party leader. He

stated that the party will take the initiative of

starting a parliamentary investigation against Prime

Minister Erdogan.

 

By H. Chaqrian

 

[Johannes]

After Hrant Dinks’ assassination, turkish authorities decided to discuss the Armenian Diaspora leaders.

 

To discuss what? Is it discussion just to discuss? Alternatively, what?

 

Are they ready? If they are, what they can give us?

 

Rebuilding some churches? For whom? Who will pray there? Grey wolves?

 

Then, what they hope from the Diasporas? Shutting up? Not to mention about our annihilated homeland? Not to mention destruction of our heritage and population after all? Nevertheless, but why? Because they are rebuilding a couple of churches among the thousands they destroyed?

 

May I suggest a little more.

 

At 23 April, after their children festival, 73 millions of them must stand up for the memory of our victims, then they must bow 3 time toward the east, to apologize the Armenians, after that, they can go to stephanakert, one by one, to kiss the feet of freedom fighters of Independent Armenian Artsakh, because the turks caused all these problems in our homeland, but the defenders of Artsakh, recorrected the errors caused before by turks.

 

After this happened may we decide within us, what to do.

 

However, please do not come near of me. Cheers.

 

In addition, you! Some of ''sevilmez yilan yavrulari'' as zrr, why you did not answer Hellectors’ article?

 

You cannot. You do not have any thinking or ideas to share with us, or to give to us.

 

Indeed, you are in chaos. Your simple aim is to confuse the Armenians. However, you are falling in confusion.

 

Is this the turkish authorities aim and way in discussing the diasporas?

 

 

[zurderer]

You are going to be very busy.

 

Haha, excatlty what I was thinking when I am writing that sentence. Well, You know. Aklın yolu bir.

the hell is that supposed to mean?

 

I think he just want to show similarity between you and a turkish fasist. Okey there is a big different, turkish fasist are turks. So you are better than them, armenian fasist.

[Aratta-Kingdom]

Haha, excatlty what I was thinking when I am writing that sentence. Well, You know. Aklın yolu bir.

I think he just want to show similarity between you and a turkish fasist. Okey there is a big different, turkish fasist are turks. So you are better than them, armenian fasist.

 

 

 

Turkish fascists are accused of committing genocide and you are negotiating their sentence. Now get the hell out of hyeforum.

 

[Arpa]

After Hrant Dinks’ assassination, turkish authorities decided to discuss the Armenian Diaspora leaders.

=======

[Indeed, you are in chaos. Your simple aim is to confuse the Armenians. However, you are falling in confusion.

 

Is this the turkish authorities aim and way in discussing the diasporas?

Here is that news item

===

Turkey going to open dialogue with Armenian diaspora

31.01.2007 18:25 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey has assumed a pretentious diplomatic

program. According to www.globalhye.com website, supposing that Hrant

Dink's assassination provided the Armenian diaspora with a heavy trump

card for the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide,

Turkish expert Ercan Yavuz writes, `A delegation consisting of 10

members of the Turkish parliament led by head of the U.S.-Turkey

friendship group Egmen Bashi will pay a visit to the United States

February 9-16 to launch lobbying in the Congress. The delegation

members will meet with the Congressmen and NGO representatives. At the

same time Turkish FM Abdullah Gul will visit European states.

Meetings with outstanding figures of the Armenian diaspora are

expected.'

According to the source, establishment of a dialogue with the Armenian

diaspora is another important move in Turkey's strategic

program. During Hrant Dink's funeral the Turkish parliament offered

the Armenian diaspora to take part in the opening ceremony of the

Armenian Church on Akhtamar.

====

The above item omits the name of that so called “delegation“.

It is called the Dumbek and Domra Songa and Dance Group.

Dumbek; Actually an Arabic instrument but…. What the H…

http://www.gypsophilia.com/Instruments/Dumbeck.html

Domra; ( Note that the instrument is Russian but the Turks play it as if it is theirs.

http://www.barynya.com/domra.htm

This is the second time this song an dance group has tried to sing some gazels and dance around the issues. We still remember the first edition that was known as TARC.

http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?titl...tion_Commission

We did not join the chorus then and we don't intend to take part in the cacophony now.They can sing and dance all they want. We know what our song is and we know what drumbeat to walk to.

Note; In the Turkish language, at times “dumbek” is used in a pejorative way, i.e. “empty noise/idiot”, just like the Armenian “parap takar”.

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

 

STRONG WAVE OF CHAUVINISM MAY RISE IN TURKEY POSING DANGER TO

ARMENIANS LIVING THERE

 

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, NOYAN TAPAN. Strong wave of chauvinism may rise

in Turkey posing danger to Armenians living there. Ruben Safrastian,

Director of Oriental Studies Institute of RA National Academy of

Sciences, expressed such an apprehension at the February 1 press

conference. In his words, anti-Armenian hysteria becomes stronger in

the past one-two years in Turkey. There is even an organization -

Union of Lawyers of Turkey, which made speeches against Armenians the

main goal of its activity.

 

In R.Safrastian's opinion, as a sovereign state Armenia should

undertake some steps using the Treaty of Lausanne signed in 1923, by

which Turkey assumed commitment to protect the rights of religious

minorities living in its territory.

 

The murder of editor-in-chief of Agos newspaper of Istanbul, Hrant

Dink was committed by an organization, which makes part of movement of

Idealists acting in the recent 30-40 years in Turkey. This

organization has one more name, Grey Wolves. In R.Safrastian's words,

this movement is the most mysterious and large-scale movement of

Turkey. It mainly consists of young people who have passed a special

training, have been educated by the extremist chauvinistic spirit of

Panturkism. At the same time, they pass training for taking part in

military operations.

 

R.Safrastian said that Turkey has one more phenomenon, "deep state."

Former Turkish leaders, as well as the current Prime Minister publicly

declared and admitted this. This is a group of people, 100 persons,

who hold important posts in various spheres and "support the state

created by Ataturk preventing any phenomenon threatening this state."

In R.Safrastian's words, there are some data that the order of

H.Dink's murder was given by this "state."

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/2...listkilled.html

 

 

Scandal over photos of Turkish police posing with teen charged with killing journalist

 

 

 

San Diego Union Tribune

February 2, 2007

 

 

 

ISTANBUL, Turkey – The Turkish media published photographs and video on Friday of police posing with a teenager charged with killing an ethnic Armenian journalist, and newspapers denounced the officers for treating the suspect as a “hero.”

The photographs show 17-year-old nationalist Ogun Samast holding out a Turkish flag and posing with officers, some in uniform. Behind Samast, a poster with another Turkish flag carries the words of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the revered founder of modern Turkey: “The nation's land is sacred. It cannot be left to fate.”

 

Samast is charged with the Jan. 19 killing of Hrant Dink, a 52-year-old ethnic Armenian journalist who had angered Turkish nationalists with repeated assertions that the mass killings of Armenians around the time of World War I was genocide.

The Turkish media was outraged by the photographs and video. “Shoulder to shoulder with the triggerman: suspected killer Samast was given the hero treatment,” the Sabah daily reported on its front page.

 

Later Friday, the state-owned Anatolia news agency reported that four police officers in Samsun, where the photographs were taken, had been dismissed and four military police officers had been moved to other assignments.

 

It was not clear whether the eight officers were the ones posing with Samast.

 

Initial reports said the photos were taken at a military police office at the bus station where Samast was captured, but military police said they were taken at a police station nearby.

 

“The military police personnel seen in the images were personnel assigned to hand over the suspect to the police,” a statement from military police headquarters said.

 

The statement urged the media to be cautious in publicizing “attempts aimed at fraying the Turkish Armed Forces” and expressed concern about the motives of those who leaked the images.

 

More than 100,000 people marched at Dink's funeral, many of them chanting for Turkey to abolish a repressive article in the penal code used against many intellectuals, including Dink, who spoke openly on controversial topics.

 

It is a crime to insult Turkey or the Turkish national character.

 

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

 

Dink’s murderer treated like hero?

 

 

02.02.2007

 

 

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey launched an inquiry into footage showing a teenager charged with the murder of Agos editor Hrant Dink posing with the Turkish flag and security officials after his arrest, police said on Friday. A 17-year-old unemployed youth, Ogun Samast, has confessed to the murder of Turkey's leading television channels showed video footage of Samast posing in front of a Turkish flag, and holding another flag next to security officials dressed in paramilitary police uniforms shortly after his arrest on January 21. Media said the images suggested Samast was treated like a hero. "The pictures were shown on television in the evening (of Thursday) and inspectors will clarify who took the pictures and why. We in the police will do everything necessary," national police spokesman Ismail Caliskan told a news conference. "Whoever is responsible will be given the appropriate punishment." Liberal newspaper Radikal editor-in-chief Ismet Berkan said the video images were worse than the murder itself. He said it showed extreme nationalism in Turkey was again on the rise. Pressure is mounting on the government to crack down on ultra-nationalist groups, a tricky task in a year of presidential and parliamentary elections, reports Reuters.

 

 

 

[Arpa]

STRONG WAVE OF CHAUVINISM MAY RISE IN TURKEY POSING DANGER TO

ARMENIANS LIVING THERE

 

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, NOYAN TAPAN. Strong wave of chauvinism may rise

in Turkey posing danger to Armenians living there. Ruben Safrastian,

Director of Oriental Studies Institute of RA National Academy of

Sciences, expressed such an apprehension at the February 1 press

conference. In his words, anti-Armenian hysteria becomes stronger in

the past one-two years in Turkey. There is even an organization -

Union of Lawyers of Turkey, which made speeches against Armenians the

main goal of its activity.."

====

Former Turkish leaders, as well as the current Prime Minister publicly

declared and admitted this. This is a group of people, 100 persons,

who hold important posts in various spheres and "support the state

created by Ataturk preventing any phenomenon threatening this state."

In R.Safrastian's words, there are some data that the order of

H.Dink's murder was given by this "state."

Does Yerevan have the option to intervene to protect its kin in case of another impending genocide”

Is this the shot heard around the world?

http://www.earlyamerica.com/shot_heard.htm

Is this the shot that will precipitate the world in WW III?

Look at that shot in Sarajevo that started WW I . Just in case, Sarajevo is the capital of “European Turkey“.

http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/pfduke.htm

EyeWitnesstoHistory.com

Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, 1914

Two bullets fired on a Sarajevo street on a sunny June morning in 1914 set in motion a series of events that shaped the world we live in today. World War One, World War Two, the Cold War and its conclusion all trace their origins to the gunshots that interrupted that summer day.

The victims, Archduke Franz Ferdinand - heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and his wife Sophie, were in the Bosnian city in conjunction with Austrian troop exercises nearby. The couple was returning from an official visit to City Hall. The assassin, 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip burned with the fire of Slavic nationalism. He envisioned the death of the Archduke as the key that would unlock the shackles binding his people to the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

A third party, Serbia, figured prominently in the plot. Independent Serbia provided the guns, ammunition and training that made the assassination possible.

The Balkan Region of Europe entered the twentieth century much as she left it: a caldron of seething political intrigue needing only the slightest increase of heat to boil over into open conflict. The shots that day in Sarajevo pushed the caldron to the boiling point and beyond.

A Royal Murder

Seven conspirators joined the crowd lining the Archduke's route to City Hall. Each took a different position, ready to attack the royal car if the opportunity presented itself. The six-car procession approached one conspirator, Gabrinovic (or Cabrinovic), who threw his bomb only to see it bounce off the Archduke's car and explode near the following car.

Unhurt, the Archduke and his wife sped to the reception at City Hall. The ceremonies finished, the Royal procession amazingly retraced its steps bringing the Archduke into the range of the leader of the conspiracy, Gavrilo Princip. More amazingly, the royal car stopped right in front of Princip providing him the opportunity to fire two shots. Both bullets hit home.

Borijove Jevtic, one of the conspirators gave this eyewitness account:

"When Francis Ferdinand and his retinue drove from the station they were allowed to pass the first two conspirators. The motor cars were driving too fast to make an attempt feasible and in the crowd were many Serbians; throwing a grenade would have killed many innocent people.

When the car passed Gabrinovic, the compositor, he threw his grenade. It hit the side of the car, but Francis Ferdinand with presence of mind threw himself back and was uninjured. Several officers riding in his attendance were injured.

The cars sped to the Town Hall and the rest of the conspirators did not interfere with them. After the reception in the Town Hall General Potiorek, the Austrian Commander, pleaded with Francis Ferdinand to leave the city, as it was seething with rebellion. The Archduke was persuaded to drive the shortest way out of the city and to go quickly.

The road to the maneuvers was shaped like the letter V, making a sharp turn at the bridge over the River Nilgacka [Miljacka]. Francis Ferdinand's car could go fast enough until it reached this spot but here it was forced to slow down for the turn. Here Princip had taken his stand.

As the car came abreast he stepped forward from the curb, drew his automatic pistol from his coat and fired two shots. The first struck the wife of the Archduke, the Archduchess Sofia, in the abdomen. She was an expectant mother. She died instantly.

The second bullet struck the Archduke close to the heart.

He uttered only one word, 'Sofia' -- a call to his stricken wife. Then his head fell back and he collapsed. He died almost instantly.

The officers seized Princip. They beat him over the head with the flat of their swords. They knocked him down, they kicked him, scraped the skin from his neck with the edges of their swords, tortured him, all but killed him."

Another Perspective

Count Franz von Harrach rode on the running board of the royal car serving as a bodyguard for the Archduke. His account begins immediately after Princip fires his two shots:

"As the car quickly reversed, a thin stream of blood spurted from His Highness's mouth onto my right check. As I was pulling out my handkerchief to wipe the blood away from his mouth, the Duchess cried out to him, 'In Heaven's name, what has happened to you?' At that she slid off the seat and lay on the floor of the car, with her face between his knees.

I had no idea that she too was hit and thought she had simply fainted with fright. Then I heard His Imperial Highness say, 'Sopherl, Sopherl, don't die. Stay alive for the children!'

At that, I seized the Archduke by the collar of his uniform, to stop his head dropping forward and asked him if he was in great pain. He answered me quite distinctly, 'It's nothing!' His face began to twist somewhat but he went on repeating, six or seven times, ever more faintly as he gradually lost consciousness, 'It's nothing!' Then, after a short pause, there was a violent choking sound caused by the bleeding. It was stopped as we reached the Konak."

References:

Brook-Shepard, Gordon, Archduke of Sarajevo (1984); Dedijer, Vladimir, The Road To Sarajevo (1966); Morton, Frederick, Thunder At Twilight (1989).

How To Cite This Article:

"Assassination of an Archduke," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (1998). Gavrilo Princip (age 19) was sentenced to twenty years of hard labor. He escaped the death penalty because he was under the age of 21.

Three other conspirators were tried including Cabrinovic, the bomb-thrower. He and another under-aged conspirator received a sentence of 20 years hard labor. The 3rd conspirator, Danilo Ilic, was executed on Feb. 3, 1915. Princip died in prison of tuberculosis on April 28, 1918. His two fellow conspirators preceded him in death, also dying of tuberculosis.

 

 

 

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

1,500.000 + 1

 

 

'I killed a non-Moslem...I don't regret this' those were the words of the assassin.

 

 

Why aren't the armenians from around the world demanding for the butcher to be sent to Hague and be tried by the International Court of Justice instead of being treated like a hero [by the turks]?

 

The time has came for the turks to surrender and pay for all their crimes agains mankind. Nothing short of 'unconditional surrender' must be accepted.

Edited February 2, 2007 by ArmoArmeN

[Error 404]

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42526000/jpg/_42526789_samastafp203body.jpg

 

Here we go. Police officers posing with a murderer. They probably encouraging him and telling him thank you.

 

What do you expect from a country and a nation who does this?

 

They've never got and never will get civilized. A nation with animal instincts.

[neko]

 

Look at that shot in Sarajevo that started WW I . Just in case, Sarajevo is the capital of “European Turkey“.

http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/pfduke.htm

 

Follow that thinking, and you will next be saying that Iraq was responsible for 9/11, or that the Armenian defenders of Van were responsible for the Armenan genocide.

 

Austria and Germany started World War 1 for their own expansionist interests, and used the assassination in Sarajevo as an excuse for and a route to that war. If it hadn't happened then they would have found some other excuse, or invented one.

 

[Armenak]

Follow that thinking, and you will next be saying that Iraq was responsible for 9/11, or that the Armenian defenders of Van were responsible for the Armenan genocide.

There was a Soviet Armenian writer from Van who wrote something like this. Later he was shipped off to Siberia, and after returning to Yerevan, he was greeted by an angry mob of Armenians.

[Aratta-Kingdom]

 

DeFacto Agency, Armenia

Feb 2 2007

 

 

RESOLUTION CONDEMNING HRANT DINK'S ASSASSINATION INTRODUCED TO U. S.

SENATE

 

 

On February 1 the U. S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman

Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE) introduced legislation condemning the

assassination of Hrant Dink and honoring his legacy of tolerance and

peaceful change.

According to the information DE FACTO got at the Armenian Assembly of

America (AAA), Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny stated, "We

commend Senator Biden for spearheading this important legislation.

The atmosphere that led to this killing must be changed, starting

with the repeal of Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. As a moral

leader, America must ensure that minority populations in Turkey are

afforded every protection."

Dink, who worked hard to foster dialogue and understanding between

Armenians and Turks, was gunned down outside his newspaper office on

January 19 in Istanbul, Turkey. An outspoken advocate for democratic

reform, Dink stood trial several times for his public comments on the

genocide and was convicted in October 2005 for "insulting

Turkishness" under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. He received

a six-month suspended sentence and was set to appear in court again

in March 2007 for affirming the Armenian Genocide. "Hrant Dink was a

leading voice in Turkey's Armenian community and an eloquent advocate

for human rights, press freedom, and democracy," Senator Biden told

the Assembly. "His assassination was an outrage and a tragedy.

Hrant's legacy deserves the Senate's respect. His murder demands our

action."

The Senate bill is similar to H. Res. 102, which was introduced by

Congressman Joseph Crowley (D-NY) on January 29 with the support of

the Armenian Assembly. The Biden resolution condemns Dink's

assassination and supports Turkey's pledge to conduct an exhaustive

investigation into his killing. Furthermore, the legislation urges

Turkey to take appropriate action to protect freedom of speech in

Turkey by repealing Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, which

criminalizes public discussion on the Armenian Genocide. The

resolution also calls on Turkey to reestablish full diplomatic,

political and economic relations with Armenia.

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

 

Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation

 

 

 

In Memory of Hrant Dink

 

More than a million Armenians were killed in the genocide of 1915. The

Turks seized great tracts of Armenian land that have never been

returned. Now, Hrant Dink's murder in Istanbul serves to remind us of

this first holocaust of the Twentieth Century, even as the BBC

repeatedly remarked on the "alleged mass killings" of Armenians by

Turks, notwithstanding the abundant evidence of that genocide that has

been presented over the years.

 

But Mr Dink stood for a different and higher standard of journalism.

When we received news of his murder, Ayse Berktay, a Turkish friend of

the Russell Foundation who lives in Istanbul, put it this way:

 

"Our dear friend Hrant Dink, one of the endorsers of the World Tribunal

on Iraq, a peace and truth-loving Armenian journalist, founder and

editor-in-chief of the journal AGOS, a foremost, courageous and most

outspoken voice of the Armenian community in Turkey, was murdered in

broad daylight in front of the journal building yesterday. He was a

staunch but very human and very convincing defender of brotherhood

between peoples and put his life at stake to build such genuine

brotherhood because he believed that to be genuine, this brotherhood had

to base itself on truth and acknowledgement of the identity and plight

of one another, on getting rid of prejudices, on recognising the

potential richness of the variety of cultures that exist in our land."

 

Hrant Dink will clearly be missed by many people in Turkey as well as in

Armenia, but we should join them in honouring him ourselves

 

As Robert Fisk has pointed out, one of the sobering lessons of the

Armenian genocide is that some of those Germans who went on to

perpetrate the Nazi genocide of the Jews witnessed first-hand the

slaughter of 1915 in eastern Anatolia. It is vital that the whole truth

is told about these events, which are still more often denied than one

would think possible. That is the best tribute we can pay to Hrant

Dink's memory.

 

Ken Coates, Tony Simpson, on behalf of the Bertrand Russel Peace

Foundation

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

 

 

Turkish police posed for picture with killer of Armenian journalist

 

 

 

The Independent

 

By Peter Popham

03 February 2007

 

 

 

 

 

Less than a fortnight after huge crowds thronged the streets of Istanbul at the funeral of the murdered Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, chanting, "We are all Armenian," Turkey yesterday showed another, more sinister face.

 

Turkish newspapers and television news programmes carried images of the man accused of shooting Mr Dink posing proudly behind a Turkish flag with police officers. In the background was a poster bearing the words of Mustafa Kemal Attaturk: "The nation's land is sacred. It cannot be left to fate."

 

The video caused shock and consternation as commentators warned it was another sign of the growing power of Turkish ultra- nationalism as the nation gears up for parliamentary and presidential elections later this year.

 

Ismet Berkan, editor of the liberal newspaper Radikal, said that the release of the video was like killing Mr Dink a second time. It proved, he claimed, "that the murderer and his associates are not alone, that their supporters ... have penetrated all segments of the state."

 

Hrant Dink was the founder and editor of Agos, the weekly newspaper of Turkey's small and beleaguered Armenian population. Since launching the paper he had fought tirelessly to improve relations between Turkey and Armenia, which have been in deep freeze since the extermination of Armenia's large community in Anatolia between 1915 and 1917, the first genocide of the 20th century.

 

Mr Dink told Turks to face the facts about the genocide, but his great goal was reconciliation. When France passed a law making denial of the Armenian genocide a criminal offence, for example, Mr Dink declared that he would go to France to deny it himself. He wrote that Armenians should "clear their blood of hatred for the Turks".

 

Mangled in reiteration by Turkish nationalist websites, these words became "Turkish blood is dirty" - sparking 17-year-old Ogun Samast to travel to Istanbul from the Black Sea city of Trabzon and shoot Mr Dink outside his office. Seven others, all from Trabzon, have now been arrested for involvement.

 

A police spokesperson said an investigation into the video footage and its leaking was under way.

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

 

 

Tribute To Hrant Dink

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SijWiIB5wkc

 

 

 

 

Literal Killing of The Truth

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TshSIWLaF0...ted&search=

 

 

 

Hrant Dink: Who Is The Turk? We Have An Eye On This Land (in Armenian)

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz5RKdE0hxQ

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Johannes]

Austria and Germany started World War 1 for their own expansionist interests, and used the assassination in Sarajevo as an excuse for and a route to that war. If it hadn't happened then they would have found some other excuse, or invented one.

 

Այս նեկոն որպէս զարգացած մարդ, արդիօք գիտէ՞ , որ ոսմանցիք գերմանցիներու դաշնակիցներն էին: Արդիօք ան գիտէ՞ որ հայերը (դաշնակցութիւնը, որպէս իթթիհադի «բարեկամ» կուսակցութիւն) խնդրեցին աղաչեցին էնվերին որպէսզի պատերազմի չ'մասնակցի: Չի գիտէր:

Ան իր միակողմանի գաղափարներով (դիտմամբ կամ տգիտմամբ) եկած է մեզ իր զայրոյթը յայտնելու:

Կամայ ակամայ, այս թուրքերը թուրքիոյ պետական քարոզչութեան ուղեղալուացքին ենթարկուած են:

Այդ ուղեղալուացքի համար գործածւող օճառներէն (detergent) մին է, սա գաղափարն է. իբր իրենք զոհ դարձած են կայսերապաշտական (imperialist güçler) արեւմուտքին:

Ամէնամեծ կայսերապաշտական երկիրը իրենք եղած են. Ադրիականէն Եմեն:

Ամէնամեծ ջարդարարները, ժողովուրդներու դահիճները թուրքերն են, պատմութեան մէջ արձանագրուած, իրենց բազմագոյն անուններով:

 

 

 

[Hellektor]

Ամէնամեծ կայսերապաշտական երկիրը իրենք եղած են. Ադրիականէն Եմեն:

Ամէնամեծ ջարդարարները, ժողովուրդներու դահիճները թուրքերն են, պատմութեան մէջ արձանագրուած, իրենց բազմագոյն անուններով:

Մէկ էլ էդ ևրոպոռնիկներին ասա որ առ այժմս անամօթաբար թուրքի տակ են պառկած:

 

Amsterdam will be a majority Muslim (read Turkish) city by 2020... Holland, my favorite country, will go down first even before the introduction of the Turkic Civilization-deficiency Virus into Europouf Union.

Edited February 4, 2007 by Hellektor

[MosJan]

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42526000/jpg/_42526789_samastafp203body.jpg

 

Here we go. Police officers posing with a murderer. They probably encouraging him and telling him thank you.

 

What do you expect from a country and a nation who does this?

 

They've never got and never will get civilized. A nation with animal instincts.

 

 

to dranst mer@'n & Manuk@ !!!

 

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

The release of the video was like killing Mr. Dink a second time

 

ArmRadio.am

03.02.2007 12:33

 

'Less than a fortnight after huge crowds thronged the streets of

Istanbul at the funeral of the murdered Armenian journalist Hrant

Dink, chanting, "We are all Armenian," Turkey yesterday showed

another, more sinister face,' Peter Popham wrote in the February 3rd

issue of The Independent.

 

Turkish newspapers and television news programmes carried images of

the man accused of shooting Mr. Dink posing proudly behind a Turkish

flag with police officers. In the background was a poster bearing the

words of Mustafa Kemal Attaturk: "The nation's land is sacred. It

cannot be left to fate."

 

Ismet Berkan, editor of the liberal newspaper Radikal, said that the

release of the video was like killing Mr. Dink a second time. It

proved, he claimed, "that the murderer and his associates are not

alone, that their supporters ... have penetrated all segments of the

state."

 

[Aubépine]

Three Realities We, as Citizens of Turkey, Must Urgently Come to Terms With

 

by Fatma Mindikoglu, University of California, San Diego.

 

We shot Hrant Dink in the back just in front of his newspaper. Not with one bullet, with exactly three bullets. If we shamelessly directed the gun to his face, to his heart, we would not be able to shoot Hrant anyways, our eyes would be dazzled. His soul that has been living in the 'unease of a pigeon' for some while, his tormented consciousness that has been under the siege of our Law of Treason No:301 finally found peace perhaps for the first time on our lands that he loved to death. He was just 53 when we shot him in the back and released him from the Prison of Turkishness on 19 January 2007. While Hrant was slowly rising to heavens in his black body bag, finally having found a space in the darkness of which his Armenian difference did not matter, the folk song, 'Bride in the Yellow' (Sari Gelin for Turks, Sari Gyalin for Armenians) was playing at a party convention of the ruling Islamist party AKP in tribute to him. The song, that has long been popular across the Caucasus region and a cultural site of contestation among the Armenians and Turks, is about the tragic love of Sari Gelin. Its protagonist, a bride living in the rugged mountains separated from her lover, symbolizes love, death and fate. What could be a better song of tribute for the Armenian Antigone of Turkey?

Bulutlar pare pare, Sevdiğimi alamadım, Ah, anan ölsün dağlı gelin

Ambela para para , Yes im siradzin chara Ah, meret merni sari gyalin

With Sari Gelin / Sari Gyalin tunes rising from our nation where the Armenians have long been the superfluous minority, those who govern us composed equally tragic lyrics one after another on Dink's assassination: 'This attack on Hrant Dink was in fact an attack on all of us, on our unity and integrity as a nation, on our peace and stability.' 'This is a perfidious, insidious, an intentional attack that aims to annihilate Turkey's happiness.' 'Who was shot was not only Hrant Dink, it was at the same time Turkey's reputation.' 'The attack has an agenda geared towards our domestic politics. The goal is to install feelings of guilt in our collective unconscious.' The real victim was not Hrant Dink, it was us, as usual: Our peace, our stability, our happiness, our unity, our integrity, our conscience that has long forgotten disturbance and shame. It was us who was shot yesterday, not Dink whose thoughts and opinions, whose entire consciousness and existence was put under ban with our Law of Treason, the catastrophic brainchild of our own existential fears and foundational traumas.

 

On the one hand an epidemic of paranoia infected our airwaves, on the other hand we got drowned in the words of endearment dedicated to Hrant Dink. A society and its intellectuals along with their ruling elites - who could not stand the possibility that Sabiha Gökçen could be an Armenian, who did not feel outraged when an Interior Minister called Abdullah Öcalan 'an Armenian bastard', we, who settled for a mere spectatorship while Hrant Dink was languishing in the dark and smoky corridors in the courts of justice [sic] and metamorphosing into a human target of harassment and hatred, we all became 'Armenians', we all became 'Hrant Dinks', suddenly. Our streets were blocked off of love, fellowship, and the fraternity of peoples. With no doubt we meant well, many of us no doubt were angry and heart-broken. But in the ocean of our suffering and rage that assumed a deceitful oneness and resembled real human solidarity for several hours in the streets of our highly divided society as thousands rallied in Istanbul in protest of this heinous murder, lies with truths, victims with victimizers, patriotism with racism, politics of pity with human solidarity, bytes of official history with narratives of Anatolian memories, feelings of guilt with national pride became all entangled and exploded as a massive tear gas bomb at the center of the nation.

 

Those of us who can open their eyes in this smoke and mayhem now, those citizens of Turkey who truly love Turkey, are obliged to come to terms with three realities as soon as possible:

First of all, who was shot yesterday was neither our integrity, nor our national unity, nor our international reputation. Who was shot yesterday was an Armenian citizen of Turkey whose life we took in the age of 53 by shooting him in the back. He was shot because he was an Armenian. The reason for his murder was that he was succeeding in helping us see the reality of 1915, that he had not lost his love and respect for the people of Turkey despite the vices and injustices he was enduring among us. Who we shot in the back was a citizen of Turkey who had boldly protested against the French Bill on the Armenian Genocide several months ago, who had refused to 'shoot us in the back' and collaborate with imperial powers who do target our peace, our stability, our fledgling democracy in times of our political turmoil. He was shot because he genuinely believed that Turkish people, the children of Anatolia, had the wisdom to come to terms with 1915 on their own.

 

Second, neither acts of compassion (the 'noblest form of passion,' according to Arendt), nor the very same lies that we have been telling ourselves since the foundation of our Republic will help us establish democracy and freedom in our country. Indeed, the history of nation-states is fraught with examples that illustrate how easily 'conflicts of the soul', ocean-like emotions carried into politics can turn into murderous episodes. We need to bring reason back to our politics. We need to re-think which forms of institutions will sustain an enduring democracy for our Anatolian ethnic mosaic still dramatically oscillating between the eastern and the western values. Young democracies as ethnically diverse as ours can survive episodes of political turmoil neither with lullabies of humanism murmuring 'good intentions' nor with gospels of love on the essential goodness of human beings or the natural goodness of a people. They can only survive in a political order where the rules of law have a duty to protect the norms of constitutional citizenship along with the norms of free speech. To those societies whose citizens relate to each other like blood brothers, establish their solidarities based on their enemies within and enemies without and see their future only in the image of a glorious past that knows no words of wisdom on the frailties of human nature and on the darkness of human heart, every fairy returning from the world of the dead looks like a many-headed monster just about to devour them and they can easily lose their minds in their introversion exasperating existential fears , and eventually succumb to violence and ruin. As the Bulgarian philosopher Todorov puts it, they bleed to death out of a tiny little scratch.

 

Third and most important, yesterday was not the first time we shot Hrant Dink in the back. We had shot many Hrants, Rakels, Anahits, Tigrans, Hagops in the back in 1915. True, thousands of us entered Anatolia from the Balkans, many thousands from Caucasia; fleeing indescribable atrocities, tortures, and injustices. True, many Kurds and Turks rescued many Armenians, hid them in their homes, barns, hid them behind the mountains for days, weeks, perhaps for years. But there is another truth, that is, even if it was not us, even if it was not our mothers, fathers, grandfathers who actually held the swords and the rifles that took Armenian lives, the catastrophe of 1915 remains to be a crime committed in our name, it remains to be a crime against humanity and human plurality committed in the name of 'Turkishness'. Thousands of us, especially those in the Eastern and South-Eastern Anatolia, grew up in the houses that Armenians left behind, cultivated their lands, collected apricots from their trees, baked and sold bread in their bakeries, made a wealth out of their businesses. We erased the memories of thousands through forced conversions, transplanted them in our households as our new wives and sisters, and expected them to be grateful to us for crippling their souls. We did not want to see, did not want to understand that what we destroyed in less than a year was one of the oldest Christian cultures in the world, the making of which had taken a thousand year having survived many more invasions and slaughters. For many years, we practiced shooting drills on the walls of Akdamar Monastery Church in Van and riddled its reliefs, as we have riddled the body of Hrant Dink. In our culture of impunity where any Armenian existence has become completely superfluous since the Armenian massacres of Abdulhamid, we should think twice before we interpret the confession of the 16-year old murderer of Dink as the manifestation of some pathological deviance: 'I approached him from behind and shot him from a distance of 1 meter. I'd do it again today. I have no regrets.'

 

Turkey is now at a crossroads. We have to think about the relationships of these three realities with each other, we have to think through their inseparable trajectories and histories in the making of our Turkishness and in the making of our ontological other, the Armenian. Very carefully and very seriously. Only when we can see the essential relations of these realities, we will stop shooting each other in the back for our differences and start building the institutions in our country that will let us co-exist as citizens of Turkey, not as Turkish citizens. On then, we can chant, 'We are all Armenians,' 'We are all Hrant Dinks' in all our honesty. Only then, we will all deserve to be a Hrant Dink. For now, we remain to be the Turks who shot Hrant Dink in the back.

 

Fatma Mındıkoğlu

Ph.D. Candidate

Department of Communication

University of California, San Diego