Turkey's Pamuk Calls For Greater Freedom Of Expression

[HyeFedayis]

Orhan Pamuk, the winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize for Literature, was invited to serve for a day as editor-in-chief of the Turkish newspaper Radikal. He used the opportunity to criticise the oppression of Turkish writers, artists and intellectuals.

 

Pamuk, who got a degree in journalism about 30 years ago but never practiced the profession, dedicated the cover story in Radikal's Sunday (January 7th) issue to the subject of freedom of expression. He cited a headline from 1951 that encouraged readers to spit on one of the most eminent figures in 20th-century Turkish literature -- poet and playwright Nazim Hikmet.

 

"This expression, which was used beside Nazim Hikmet's picture, summarises the unchanging position of writers and artists in the eyes of the state and press," the story in Radikal read. Hikmet spent years in prison for his views and eventually died in exile.

 

The article also mentioned other prosecuted intellectuals, including prominent Turkish author Yasar Kemal, who has faced trial over his remarks on the Kurdish rebellion in Turkey's southeast.

 

Although it has a circulation of only 33,000, Radikal is considered one of the most important intellectual and political newspapers in the country of more than 70 million people.

 

Other front-page articles in the paper included a piece on the low percentage of women in Turkish politics and reactions to the video footage of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's recent execution. Another story, running under the headline "One cross, a thousand police," focused on the Orthodox Christmas ceremony in Istanbul.

 

Pamuk is among scores of artists and intellectuals who have been accused of "insulting Turkishness" under provisions in Turkey's penal code. The charges against him stemmed from comments he made in 2005 regarding the killings of Armenians during World War I and of Kurds in recent decades.

 

"One million Armenians and 30,000 Kurds were killed in these lands, and nobody but me dares talk about it," Pamuk said in an interview with a Swiss magazine.

 

His trial drew concerns about freedom of expression in Turkey and prompted condemnation from the EU and rights groups. Shortly after the trial began, the charges against him were dropped on a technicality.

 

Radikal's editor-in-chief, Ismet Berkan, who invited Pamuk to run the paper for a day, is said to have faced similar charges.

 

Most of the cases brought under Article 301 in Turkey's penal code -- which makes it a criminal offence to "insult" the republic, parliament or other state institutions -- have ended either with acquittals or dropped charges. Nevertheless, Turkey has been urged to amend or scrap legislation that limits freedom of expression.