Assassination Of Hrant Dink

[Johannes]

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-272678-lawyer-changes-remarks-on-gulen-movement-in-connection-with-murder-of-hrant-dink.html

 

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/spy-talk/2011/01/islamic_group_is_cia_front_ex-.html

[MosJan]

Street in Istanbul Gezi Park named after Hrant Dink

 

http://media.pn.am/media/issue/161/258/photo/161258.jpg

June 6, 2013 - 19:08 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - A street in Istanbul Gezi Park has been named after slain Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, with a symbolic grave installed in memory of destroyed Surp Hagop Armenian cemetery.

The protesters “opened” the street chanting “We are all Hrant Dinks, we are all Armenians”. Nor Zartonk initiative installed a gravestone, with the following note engraved, “1551-1939: our cemetery was destroyed: but you can’t deprive us of our park.”

The abandoned area in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district is now called “Park Manukian”. The park was surrounded with a wooden fence following the owner’s death.

“Park Manukian” inscription has been fastened by protesters on the wall of the park, Aksam newspaper reported.

[Yervant1]

HRANT DINK IS TURKEY'S MARTIN LUTHER KING: TANER AKCAM

http://armenpress.am/eng/news/733094/hrant-dink-is-turkeys-martin-luther-king-taner-ak%C3%A7am.html
16:26, 16 September, 2013

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 16, ARMENPRESS: Hrant Dink was Turkey's Martin
Luther King who struggled against discrimination for equality and
national unity. "Armenpress" reports that int he article written
in Turkish "Taraf" sich definitation to Dink gave famous Turkish
historian Taner Akcam. He suggested delcaring every second or third
Monday of September of each year Hrant Dink's Day as rhrid Monday of
January is considered Luther King's day in USA.

Now we live in a period of passing from totalitarian regime to more
democratic society. We reach the end of war between Turks and Kurds. In
past symbols keeping Turkey belonged to only a part of population. Now
those symbols do not exist. Hrant is the symbol of this new nation,"
writes Taner Akcam.

Speaking about Armenians gathering each year on the day when Dink
was killed Turkish historian records that such phenomenon happens for
the first time in Turkish history. "What is the secret of this? Have
you ever thought about it? His name hurts our heart that is seems his
murder touched our humanity," wrote Akcam mentioning that it was the
most planned crime in Turkish Republican history and all state bodies
took part in it.

Being Turkish on these lands partially symbolizes massacre of
Armenians. Our existence became possible by their destruction. With
his absence Dink again puts us in existence. In his absence we are
getting more united. Hrant introduces as a person who formed new human
society. For this reason I say that he is the symbol of new Turkey.

"The year has 365 days. Let the 364 be yours and give the other one
to Hrant," summarized Akcam.

[Yervant1]

HRANT DINK BROKE THE CHAINS OF LIE IN TURKEY WITH HIS LIFE AND DEATH: HASSAN JEMAL

http://armenpress.am/eng/news/733068/hrant-dink-broke-the-chains-of-lie-in-turkey-with-his-life-and-death-hassan-jemal.html
14:31, 16 September, 2013

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 16, ARMENPRESS: There are people whose life and
death do not belong only to them but interest the society to which
they belong. Hrant Dink's life was just like that. "Armenpress"
reports making a reference on "Agos" that about this writes famous
Turkish journalist and publicists Hassan Jemal, grandson of Jemal
Pasah, one of the organizers of Armenian genocide.

"Our beloved Hrant livedand died so that opened way giving new
questions in Turkey and looking for new answers. He lived and died
so that people to study the past of this lands. Hrant lived so that
each person who had idea and breast began struggling for democracy,
law, freedom, Human Rights and liberties. Due to Hrant I became
free. Maybe due to him were broken the chains based on lie on which
I lived for many years," wrote Hassan Jemal in his article. In his
words disclosure of murder of Dink is the examination for Turkey in
part of democracy and Human Rights. According to Jemal without passing
that examine Turkey can be considered worthy country for those values.

Hassan Jemal being the grandson of one of organizers of Armenian
genocide has announced for many times that recognizes Armenian genocide
and visited Tsitsernakaberd in 2008.

[Yervant1]

Turkish Intelligence Ordered Hrant Dink's Murder, Says Lawyer

Hrant Dink was the chief editor at Agos newspaper


YEREVAN (Armenpress) - Fethiye Çetin, the lawyer of Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink who was murdered by Turkish nationalists, has exposed new
details regarding this case in her new book titled I Am Ashamed:
Trials on Hrant Dink's Murder Trial. As Armenpress reports, citing
Turkish Haberler.com, Fethiye Çetin states in her book that the
National Intelligence Service of Turkey gave the order of Hrant Dink's
assassination via a secret code in Cyrillic alphabet.

Among other things, Fethiye Çetin emphasized that a man called
Ramazan, who introduced himself as a worker of the Chief Department of
the National Security Service of the Eastern Anatolia region, called
Çetin in March 2010 and said that he had important documents regarding
Hrant Dink's murder.

She got in touch with Ramazan via Skype, who showed her secret
documents with the emblem of the National Intelligence Service on it.
The unknown person told her that secret cryptograms are used in all
the documents. Dink's lawyer explains how they managed to read Dink's
name via Cyrillic alphabet in the aforesaid documents.


http://asbarez.com/113711/turkish-intelligence-ordered-hrant-dinks-murder-says-lawyer/

[Yervant1]

RAKEL DINK: "WE WILL CONTINUE THE PATH FORGED BY HRANT, BOTH IN LIFE AND DEATH"

Sako Arian

10:06, November 28, 2013

An entire history...What follows is my conversation with Rakel Dink,
who carries the burden of struggle and misfortune on her shoulders.

The widow of Hrant Dink, a man whose name and reputation are well-known
throughout Turkey, again visited Armenia. This time, it was to attend
the opening ceremonies of a school renamed in her late husband's honor.

This woman, calm, self-confident, but especially with eyes filled
with love and goodwill, talked to me about pain, sorrow, anguish,
indignation and her vision for the future.

What struck me most was her resolve to continue on the path set
out by Hrant which, like a red thread, weaved throughout our entire
conversation. But she did so without anger or malice, and especially
with a desire to listen to the person opposite her.

This Istanbul-Armenian woman also stressed that she is not an orator.

Mrs. Dink affirmed that Hrant Dink's death had opened a new page,
particularly for Armenians living throughout Turkey.

"He achieved more dead than alive," said Rakel Dink, adding, "The
Turks and Kurds found themselves caught up in a certain movement.

Every day, Islamized-Turkified Armenians send us their stories."

She also said that there is a certain positive shift all over Turkey.

However, while describing the situation, she also said that what still
isn't clear is the extent these developments have impacted society
at large. She explained: "People have begun a search for their past,
and a certain spirit of courage has surfaced. They have started not
to be fearful of their past. Many are still engaged in an effort to
search and find the religion of their forbearers; to recognize and
understand it. For example, the fact that special Armenian language
classes are being conducted today in Diyarbakir (Dikranagerd),
sponsored by the local municipality, must be seen in this context."

Mrs. Dink didn't forget to mention that this entire process now taking
place in Turkey requires steadfast resolve.

Before Hrant and After Hrant

"After Hrant, people started to talk more freely. This is why many
TV talk shows in Turkey started to use the phrase - before Hrant and
after Hrant. Many are trying to look to the past," she said, noting
that many are pushing their children to learn Armenian.

All of this, she said, requires struggle, courage and willpower,
because anyone in today's Turkey who wishes to return to his/her
roots must make a concerted effort to do so.

Answering my question regarding those from Armenia now living
in Turkey, Rakel Dink replied: "I do not believe that those who
left Armenia did so gladly." She also rejected my use of the word
'abandon', arguing that they didn't abandon Armenia, but were forced
to leave. "Conditions on the ground made them leave Armenia, and I
see the pain of longing in the eyes of many of them now living in
Istanbul. They all feel a longing for their native land. They want
Armenia to be a better place so that they can quickly return."

Malice Has No Future

Speaking about developments since the murder of Hrant Dink, and
especially about the overall situation in the Armenian world, Mrs.

Dink said: "I believe that after the death of Hrant, many in Armenia
and the diaspora began to look at the problems faced by the Armenian
people through his eyes. And it's wrong to say that after Hrant's
death a new path of hate took shape in the diaspora or Armenia against
Turks. If there were protest actions, they were only natural and merely
stemmed from a feeling of anger. In my opinion, malice leads to new
mistakes, and the same malice that can be seen as a consequence of
Hrant's murder, must not triumph over our resolve."

As to the court case dealing with Hrant Dink's murder, Mrs. Rakel
clarified the reasons why the Dink family decided to pull out of the
entire process.

"It's amazing that the court conducted no examination of the people
tied to the murder case. Hrant's murder was the work of a huge
network, and many closed their eyes or did nothing to stop it. The
Turkish government granted top positions to those involved in the
case, and in this way, paid them off. During the past six years,
the courts haven't conducted one serious investigation. There even
hasn't been an examination of the reports prepared by the president
or prime minister. Let me say that these reports note that the crime
was premeditated and how, on the day of the murder, many officials
and police weren't where they should have been, thus allowing the
perpetrator to get close to Hrant and kill him. For all these years,
the courts have been trying to tell us that the murder wasn't planned.

At one point, they even tried to convince us that Hrant was still
alive and well. Naturally, we had no desire to become a puppet in
the hands of the courts. Even witnesses linked to the incident never
showed up in court in the initial phase of the trial. What happened
on that day isn't that important as much as the entire process prior
to the murder."

"Hrant...Either Love Turkey or Leave"

Mrs. Dink also spoke about how a group of strangers visited the Agos
office in 2004 and placed a black wreath on the street outside where
Hrant was to be gunned down three years later. "It shows that they
already had decided to kill Hrant. I'll never forget how they were
chanting, 'Hrant, you are our target', 'Either love Turkey or leave',
'We'll come knocking on your door one night', and other threats. Thus,
the most important portion of this entire process is what transpired
prior to the murder. And it's clear that Hrant was being followed.

Despite all this, state security agencies were not at all interested
in his safety."

Rakel Dink also told me that photos of all the people who participated
in the hate protests were presented to the court, but the authorities
did nothing to identify them. "I believe that identifying these names
has some connection to the state mentality whose roots run deep,
and beneath which the real brain of the state machinery that has
committed genocide lies."

When I asked if she ever brought up the subject of leaving Turkey
with Hrant, Rakel Dink said: "Yes, we discussed the possibility. But
wherever Hrant would have gone, he'd struggle against injustice." She
added that it would even have been difficult for Hrant to relocate
to Armenia, since he never would have tolerated the ongoing injustice.

Rakel Dink also said the same about Dink family lawyer Fethiye Cetin,
who also believes that the courts did everything to cover up the real
reasons for Hrant's murder and those responsible.

Hrant Dink Foundation: Conferences on Western Armenia

Speaking about the work carried out by the Hrant Dink Foundation, Mrs.

Dink pointed out that their mission includes organizing academic
conferences. Of particular note is the fact that conferences focusing
on various regions of western Armenia take place in the very regions
themselves. As an example, she noted that last year's conference
on the Mardin region took place in the town of Mardin. Armenian,
Turkish and Kurdish experts participate in these conferences.

Mrs. Dink also said that during these conferences she is often
approached by Turks who express feelings of guilt when talking about
past events. "Two young Turks approached me in Mardin and spoke about
the guilt they felt. I told them that we had no ulterior motives
in talking about all this stuff, but that it would take courage to
discuss these tragic events together. As an example, I asked, 'if my
father is guilty of something, how long can I keep concealing it?"

In this context, Rakel Dink thinks it is very important for people
to be able to stand before history, and added, "Hrant would say that
we must learn to look history in the face."

She also pointed out that this year's conference was dedicated to the
important theme of Islamized Armenians. She said that these Armenians
merit our attention because they accepted Islam due to reasons beyond
their control, and that no one has the right to question their Armenian
identity, given that deep down, they feel Armenian.

Gomidas Didn't Go Mad, He Went Silent

"After the events of April 24, Gomidas Vartabed didn't go mad, he
went silent. After those events, all the borders for Gomidas were
transgressed. Even his lips were locked, a result of being confused,
stunned and bewildered by those tragic events," said Mrs. Dink, and
continued, "When the court issued its conclusion that the murder of
Hrant Dink wasn't planned, we all remained silent. And that's when
my mind fixed on Gomidas Vartabed."

She continued: "Prior to the Great Crime (Meds Yeghern) Gomidas was
well respected throughout Turkey. He was an important religious and
cultural figure, and had ties with the elite. He could even meet with
such top officials that even Turks couldn't get an audience with. But
Gomidas went silent when faced with the torture and brutality of what
transpired. We are also in that situation; of bewilderment, confusion
and puzzlement. Getting back to Gomidas, let me say that we couldn't
or didn't want to understand his silence, and we even regarded him as
someone who went mad. All of us knew that the court could issue such
a decision, but we wanted to believe, to be tricked into hoping, that
something would change. But alas... (long pause). We wanted to hope,
wanted to wait. We wanted that this process, which started with these
events and Hrant's murder, serve as an opportunity for the Armenian
and Turkish peoples to find a new path. We didn't permit the malice
and anger in our hearts to win out...but to no avail..."

Continuing, Rakel Dink noted: "Hrant would have wanted it that
way. It was all a part of his struggle. This is all a struggle of
life, and I reflected on it during my 'Letter to my beloved' eulogy
at Hrant's funeral. I wanted to see a window of hope out of Hrant's
murder, out of death. Hrant's death was destined to give us life,
and I see a Christian meaning of restoring life anew from his death."

An Electrified Turkey

Reflecting on the day that Hrant was murdered, Rakel Dink said:

"That day, all of Turkey experienced a jolt that continues to be felt.

I am confident that this jolt rippled out to each and every place
where there are Armenians. It resembles a stone that is thrown into
the sea, creating a continuous series of waves.

People carry that emotion till today. Frequently, I'll meet people
in the street who approach me and say, 'Mrs. Rakel, forgive us.

I also remember the time I was waiting for my luggage in the Paris
airport. Two Turkish women approached and said, 'Mrs. Rakel, please
don't leave Turkey.

True, all of Turkey doesn't think like this, but such examples are
important nevertheless. I believe that we have a long row to hoe."

(English translation: Hrant Gadarigian)

http://hetq.am/eng/interviews/31008/rakel-dink-%E2%80%9Cwe-will-continue-the-path-forged-by-hrant-both-in-life-and-death%E2%80%9D.html

[Yervant1]

TURKISH JOURNALIST NEDIM SENER DEDICATES HIS PRESS FREEDOM AWARD TO THE MEMORY OF HRANT DINK

10:16 29.11.2013

Hrant Dink

Nedim Å~^ener, an investigative journalist with Turkey's Posta
newspaper, was honored with Press Freedom Award, a recognition for
his work in the Turkish press against a myriad of odds and challenges
that mar the profession in the country, Today's Zaman reports.

The Committee to Protect Journalists' 2013 International Press Freedom
Awards were presented to Ecuador's Janet Hinostroza, Egypt's Bassem
Youssef, Turkey's Nedim Å~^ener and Vietnam's Nguyen Van Hai in a
ceremony at New York's Waldorf Astoria hotel on Tuesday evening.

Å~^ener, who is among the four foreign journalists that were honored
with Press Freedom Awards for their work in the face of severe
reprisals, including physical threats and imprisonment, dedicated
his award to the memory of Hrant Dink, a journalist whose killing he
blames on the Turkish intelligence service.

"Hrant Dink was threatened by state officials because he had exercised
his freedom of expression. He was murdered because state officials
turned a blind eye to threats against him and failed to protect his
life," said Å~^ener in the ceremony in New York.

Å~^ener spent a year in jail awaiting trial on terrorism
charges following allegations his reporting had contributed to an
anti-government plot. He is currently free on conditional release
but faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

"Turkey is a record-breaker. Sixty journalists are jailed there on the
accusation of being terrorists -- that's more than anywhere else in
the world," Å~^ener said. "Most recently, several colleagues received
life terms after a trial that shocked the Turkish press corps. I feel
compelled to speak for them now. Don't be indifferent to their fate!

Demand their release!"

He said there is a disagreement between journalists and politicians
over the meaning of democracy as the latter view democray only through
the prism of ballot box and elections.

"For politicians,democracy means allowing people to vote every four
years. For journalists, democracy is an everyday experience. And the
essence of that experience is the people's right to be informed. It
is no coincidence that the first act of an authoritarian government
is to silence the press," Å~^ener said, addressing the increasing
government pressure on the press.

He also lamented on wide use of self-censorship by media outlets
in the face of government pressure. He said majority of the media
outlets remained indifferent to Gezi Park protests in June, exercising
self-censorship to avoid a crisis with the government.

"The events of Gezi Park over the summer revealed the scope of the
press freedom crisis in my country. Thirty journalists were hurt,
many were detained, and dozens were fired from their jobs because of
their Gezi coverage. But perhaps the gravest problem was that many
media outlets did not cover Gezi. Even though dramatic clashes were
taking place right outside their windows, many newsrooms chose to
self-censor for fear of official repercussions."

http://www.armradio.am/en/2013/11/29/turkish-journalist-nedim-sener-dedicated-his-press-freedom-awards-to-the-memory-of-hrant-dink/

[Yervant1]

SUSPECT IN DINK CASE THREATENS TURKISH OFFICIAL

14:10 ~U 24.12.13

A suspect in the criminal case over the murder of Hrant Dink, the
editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian publication Agos, has issued
threats to a senior Turkish police official.

In a letter to Engin Dinci, the chief of the Turkish Police
Intelligence Department, Erhan Tuncel has threatened to disclose the
ultra-nationalist Ergenekon organization's link to the murder if he
is not freed and provided with compensation by the next court hearing,
the Taraf newspaper reported,

Tuncel claimed in earlier testimonies that a band headed by Ramazan
Akyurek, chief of the Trabzon police, was behind the plot.

The letter reportedly spreads light on many questions, with Tuncel
threatening the Turkish senior police officer and saying he was among
the officials who used him.

Hrant Dink was gunned down outside his office on January 19, 2007.

Armenian News - Tert.am

[Yervant1]

15:33 13/01/2014 » SOCIETY

Hurriyet Daily News: Jailed PKK leader honors memory of Hrant Dink

Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has honored the memory of Hrant Dink, an Armenian-Turkish journalist killed seven years ago in an ultranationalist plot, the Hurriyet Daily News reported.
“I greet the memory and the struggle of the precious child of the Armenian people, our brother Hrant,” Öcalan said in a message which was conveyed to the public on Jan. 11 following a visit to İmralı Island by two deputy parliamentary group chairs of the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), İdris Baluken and Pervin Buldan, and People’s Democratic Party (HDP) deputy Sırrı Süreyya Önder.
“I hope to address our Armenian citizens with a comprehensive letter and have it ready for the anniversary of the massacre of Hrant,” Öcalan said.
Dink, the renowned editor-in-chief of Agos, which has been the voice of the small Armenian community in Istanbul for several years, was shot dead by Ogün Samast in front of his office in Istanbul on Jan. 19, 2007. Samast was sentenced to over 22 years in jail for the murder.

Source: Panorama.am

[Yervant1]

May your soul rest in peace, dear Hrant son of Armenia.

[Yervant1]

EuroNews, France
Jan 19 2014


Murdered journalist Hrant Dink remembered in Istanbul march

19/01 18:30 CET

Murdered Armenian journalist Hrant Dink has been remembered with a
march through Istanbul on the seventh anniversary of his death.

The renowned former editor-in-chief of Agos newspaper was shot dead in
broad daylight outside his work premises.

Extreme nationalist teenager, Ogün Samast was convicted of
pre-meditated murder and sentenced to 22 years and 10 months in prison
for carrying out the assassination.

But many people - including those on the march - believe higher powers
masterminded the plan against a man who openly rejected Turkey's
denial of the 1915 Armenian Genocide.

`Government agencies, both covert and public, are involved in Hrant
Dink's murder,' said one man on the march. `They're now in a power
struggle. But the case is not really moving forward. They're trying to
cover the truth up. They shot him together, they killed him together,
they protected others together and now they're covering it up
together. Therefore, they're all guilty.'

The acquittal of top suspects in the original trial has since been
overturned by the Supreme Court of Appeals.

Some suspects who had previously been cleared of instigating the
murder - such as Yasin Hayal and Erhan Tuncel - are now being retried.

The `Friends of Hrant Dink' organisation set up the march to call for
justice in the unresolved case. It claims that almost all of the civil
servants who were involved in the death of the journalist were
encouraged by the government.

Euronews' correspondent in Istanbul says:

`Hrant Dink was not just remembered on the seventh anniversary of his
murder, but his friends and colleagues also called for justice. They
demanded the trial of not only the man who pulled the trigger, but
those who steered him to pull it.'

http://euronews.com/2014/01/19/murdered-journalist-hrant-dink-remembered-in-istanbul-march/

[Yervant1]

HRANT DINK REMEMBERED AT RUINED ARMENIAN CHURCH IN TURKEY

January 20, 2014 | 15:00

Those that gathered at the ruined Surp Harutyun (Holy Resurrection)
Armenian church, which is located in Ergeni village of Hozat region
of Turkey's Tunceli (Dersim) Province, commemorated the seventh-year
anniversary of the murder of Hrant Dink.

The mayor of Hozat, members of the pro-Kurdish "Peace and Democracy
Party" (BDP), and the local residents gathered at the church on Sunday
and conducted a remembrance ceremony for Dink, reports Agos Armenian
weekly of Istanbul.

The participants lit candles before Dink's photograph and,
subsequently, one of them made a statement and held a sign that read,
"For Hrant, for justice."

Hrant Dink, the founder and former chief editor of Agos, was killed on
January 19, 2007 in front of the weekly's office. The ongoing trials
into Dink's murder, however, have not yet exposed those behind this
assassination.

http://news.am/eng/news/190043.html

[Yervant1]

HASAN CEMAL SPEAKS AT DINK COMMEMORATION IN TORONTO

By Raffi Bedrosyan // January 22, 2014 in Canada

TORONTO, Canada-On Jan. 19, the Toronto Armenian community gathered
to commemorate the 7th anniversary of the assassination of Hrant Dink.

More than 500 people filled the Armenian General Benevolent Union
Centre to capacity, with standing room only. The keynote speaker was
renowned Turkish journalist and author Hasan Cemal, who also happens
to be the grandson of Cemal *****, one of the three leaders of the
Committee of Union and Progress (Ittihat ve Terakki), which planned
and perpetrated the Armenian Genocide in 1915.

Cemal (L) and Bedrosyan

Mgrditch Mgrditchian was the master of ceremonies. After a beautiful
rendition of Sari Aghchig and Cilicia by young soprano Lynn Anoush
Isnar, Raffi Bedrosyan, one of Hrant's friends, introduced Hasan
Cemal. Bedrosyan explained that Hasan Cemal worked for many years
(until 1992) as the editor-in-chief of the Cumhuriyet daily, the
official mouthpiece of the Kemalist state and the defender of the
denialist official version of history related to the 1915 events.

Hasan Cemal then moved on to Sabah newspaper, the newspaper with the
largest circulation at the time, as editor (until 1998), and then to
Milliyet until March 2013, when he had to resign under pressure from
Prime Minister Erdogan for criticizing the anti-democratic policies
of the government. In recent years, Hasan Cemal got influenced by
the writings of journalist Hrant Dink and historian Taner Akcam, and
started questioning the veracity of the state version of history. As
a result, he went through a gradual intellectual transformation, until
he reached the conclusion that those events were indeed a genocide. In
2008, the year after Hrant Dink was assassinated, he went to Armenia
and visited the Genocide Memorial, placing flowers there for Hrant
and all the past genocide victims, sharing their pain. In 2012, he
wrote a book titled 1915: Armenian Genocide in Turkish. The book,
explaining his personal evolution, became a bestseller.

In his speech, Hasan Cemal stressed the need to separate personal
family history from general history. He gave examples as to how
he had to distinguish between his grandfather's actions versus his
stand against the genocide, and his dramatic meeting in Yerevan with
the grandson of one of the planners of Cemal *****'s assassination in
Tbilisi in 1922. Hasan Cemal also explained the long journey he had to
go through from having a "captive" mind, based on the state version
of history, to an "emancipated" or "liberated" mind, after seeking
and finding the facts and truth about the 1915 events. Cemal stated
that a small but fast increasing segment of the Turkish civil society
has already started to acknowledge the truth about the genocide,
and urged the Turkish state also to face its past and acknowledge
and apologize for the 1915 events.

After his speech, there was a short discussion session among Hasan
Cemal and two Zoryan Institute representatives, president Kurken
Sarkissian and Executive Director George Shirinian, moderated by
Raffi Bedrosyan, about the significance of building a "common body of
knowledge" regarding the historic facts of 1915, in order to be able
to have meaningful and constructive dialogue toward reconciliation
between Turks and Armenians.

The Toronto commemoration was another proof that Hrant Dink's legacy
lives on and gains more momentum every year, both within Turkey and
in all four corners of the world, with demands of truth and justice
to prevail for the 1.5 million Armenians plus one.

http://www.armenianweekly.com/2014/01/22/hasan-cemal-speaks-at-dink-commemoration-in-toronto/

[Yervant1]

FRENCH PRESIDENT TO MEET WIDOW OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH JOURNALIST HRANT DINK

12:17 24.01.2014

France, Francois Hollande, Hrant Dink

French President Francois Hollande will conduct a historic visit to
Turkey next week during which he will sit down with Rakel Dink, the
widow of Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, who was assassinated
seven years ago, the Hurriyet Daily New reports.

The Armenian Genocide issue has has long poisoned relations between
Turkey and France. In an effort to put relations back on track,
Hollande will try to prevent the genocide issue from overshadowing his
efforts to improve ties with Ankara. In this respect, he is expected
to give messages of reconciliation as the Turkish government is also
keen on mending fences with Armenia, with which it has no diplomatic
relations, the article reads.

Hollande's meeting with the widow of Hrant Dink, a figure that
worked for Turkish-Armenian reconciliation, will take place within
that setting. Rakel Dink is currently the director of the Hrant
Dink Foundation.

Hollande will become the first French president to conduct a state
visit to Turkey in 22 years; following his official talks in Ankara,
he will hold several meetings in Istanbul.

http://www.armradio.am/en/2014/01/24/french-president-to-meet-widow-of-armenian-turkish-journalist-hrant-dink/

[Yervant1]

World Crunch
Jan 25 2014


Death Of An Armenian Editor, Crimes Of Turkish History

Seven years after the assassination of Turkish-Armenian editor Hrant
Dink, silence remains on the crime of incitement to murder - just like
last century's Armenian Genocide.


Ahmet Insel (2014-01-25)

OpEd-

ISTANBUL - Last Sunday was the seventh anniversary of the
assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink.

For seven years, the 'coalition of silence' reigns, blocking the
revelation and prosecution of those responsible for the atmosphere
that led to the death of the so-called `treacherous Armenian.' These
forces guided and encouraged the murderer, and praised the act he
carried out, and continue to do so seven years later.

Those who pushed a 17-year-old to commit this murder, knowing he would
get a reduced sentence, have been touched by nobody. The court voiced
its powerlessness. Those within the state structure who knew such a
murder was in the works got promoted; one even became a cabinet
member.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently removed the chief of
police who failed to prevent a corruption probe regarding his close
circle, crossed his name, but awarded those who were responsible for
allowing the murder of Hrant Dink. The conservative coalition of power
in vicious conflict today was in harmony when it came to prosecute the
triggerman, and to not confront the rest.



The prime minister who does not hesitate one second to shake down the
police and judiciary to defend himself, the government, his AKP
party's administration holds on to a hypocritical silence to not to
reveal the power organization behind the murder of the Armenian
newspaper editor.

Poison gas

The murder of Hrant was not an isolated event. The killing of Sevag
Balikci while serving in the military in 2011 in the Batman province
by a `stray bullet' from his friend's rifle on April 24; the
anniversary of the great massacre the Armenians were exposed to in
1915 and after, the great crime, the Genocide was not an isolated
event either. Nor were the slayings of the Italian Priest Andrea
Santoro and the employees of the Zirve Publishing House in Malatya.
All of these acts are a manifestation of the same mentality. Even if
they were not ordered from somewhere specific, they are acts fueled by
the same poison gas the ruling powers have released in this society's
atmosphere for centuries.

The criminals are the ones who use this poison gas of nationalism for
its own ends; and for its secular version ultranationalism, the
Muslim-Turk chauvinism that has sought to create a 99% Muslim society
- and yet are not satisfied with that, and pray onward for a 100%
Muslim Turkey. This is the foundational crime of the Republic of
Turkey. The murder of Hrant is a link in the chain of these massacres,
murders, rapes, confiscations, pillages and organized violations of
rights.



And on forgiveness?

Of course, it is not easy to face such a great crime, especially if
the individuals who forged the founding links in this criminal chain
have long since died. Moreover, if the guilty parties have inherited
an entire society that is in partnership with the crime. The title of
French criminal lawyer Antoine Garapon's 2002 book describes the
situation between Turkey and the Armenians: `Crimes That Can Be
Neither Punished, Nor Forgiven.'


In his book, Garapon states that the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials were
firsts, and it became even harder at the end of the 1990's to hide
behind national sovereignty to avoid prosecution for crimes against
humanity. He says it is a meaningful coincidence that the NATO planes
started bombing Serbia to stop the mass murder in Kosovo on March 24,
1999 was the day the British House of Lords decided to eliminate the
immunity of Chile's bloody dictator General Augusto Pinochet.

That day 15 years ago is the symbolic moment when the traditional
right of sovereignty, by both judicial and militaristic means, could
no longer stand in the way of the fight against such crimes. This was
followed by the first international crime investigation against a
sitting head of state and the start of the trial of Slobodan Milosevic
on October 12, 2001. The International Criminal Court was founded in
2002, authorized to prosecute crimes against humanity within its
jurisdiction.

The aim of the court is to answer the mass murders in the name of
humanity. Because, more often than not, either the legal system of the
countries where these crimes are committed is unsuitable to try them,
or the criminals have the power to challenge the law.

In fact, these are crimes the penal law are often unfamiliar with;
ones committed, encouraged or assisted by a political decision from a
ruling administration. Garapon states these crimes are committed by
making a part of the society, mostly a big part, partners in crime
with the support of the rule of law. And so it is not possible to
pursue these crimes with the traditional penal law methods - and gets
even more complicated if they were committed during a state of war.



Time to speak

The Allies of World War I have jointly declared the ethnic cleansing
committed against the Armenians by the Ottomans was `a crime against
humanity and civilization' on May 24, 1915. The concept of crimes
against humanity was first mentioned in relation to this event.

A great national alliance in Turkey has been at work since then to
leave this great crime undefined and the partners in crime
unprosecuted; if we do not count the parentheses opened and shortly
closed during the 1919 trials. There is a great coalition of silence
and cooperation formed to deny the great crime committed against the
Armenians; to leave it undebated, forgotten.

This is the seventh anniversary of the slaying of Hrant. In a few
months, it will be the 99th anniversary of the act that eliminated the
Armenians from these lands. Call it anything we want: crime against
humanity, Genocide, the great crime, the great disaster, the great
sin; we are talking about the same enormous crime in the end.

Is it not time for today's Republic of Turkey to declare its deep
sorrow for such a crime, and apologize to all Armenians after 100
years of silence?

And let us not forget: this great crime is not just a legacy of the
past. The same crimes are being committed today, right here. The ones
who defend the offenders are together keeping their silence alive. We
will not be a part of this by staying silent ourselves. For Hrant, for
justice.


http://www.worldcrunch.com/world-affairs/death-of-an-armenian-editor-crimes-of-turkish-history/hrant-dink-erdogan-assassination-akp-pinochet-milosevic/c1s14780/#.UuQiuz_8LIU

[Yervant1]

FRENCH PRESIDENT MET DINK'S WIDOW DURING TURKEY VISIT

16:33 29.01.2014

French President Francois Hollande met with Rakel Dink, the widow of
slain Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, at the French Place in
Istanbul's Beyoglu district, as part of his two-day official visit
to Turkey.

The meeting was held behind closed doors. After the half an hour
meeting Orhan Dink made a brief statement to reporters, stressing
that the meeting was personal and not of interest for the public.

Asked whether the Armenian Genocide issue was discussed, he said "no."

IN turn, Rakel dink said: "We did not talk about anything you do
not know."

http://www.armradio.am/en/2014/01/29/french-president-met-dinks-widow-during-turkey-visit/

[Yervant1]

ZIRVE PUBLISHING HOUSE, DINK, SANTORO MURDERS CARRIED OUT BY TUSHAD, SAYS PROSECUTOR

Today's Zaman, Turkey
March 2 2014

2 March 2014 /TODAY'S ZAMAN.COM, Ä°STANBUL A prosecutor's report
stated that three high-profile murders in the country were ordered by
the National Strategies and Operations Department of Turkey (TUSHAD),
according to Turkish news outlets on Sunday.

The report, which was issued by the public prosecutor of the Malatya
3rd High Criminal Court, alleges that the Zirve Publishing House
massacre, the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and
the killing of Italian Catholic priest Andrea Santoro had all been
orchestrated by TUSHAD.

Three employees of the Christian Zirve Publishing House were tortured
and murdered in 2007 in the province of Malatya. Dink was murdered
by a young ultranationalist outside his office in Ä°stanbul, while
Santoro was killed in a church in the eastern Black Sea province of
Trabzon in 2006.

There was extensive speculation that the murders were linked as they
had occurred approximately within a year of each other and targeted
Christians.

TUSHAD is an alleged clandestine organization under the umbrella of
the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) which prosecutors in the Ergenekon
trials argued was founded by retired Gen. HurÅ~_it Tolon. Tolon, who
was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Ergenekon trials last year,
denied that the organization exists.

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-340933-zirve-publishing-house-dink-santoro-murders-carried-out-by-tushad-says-prosecutor.html

[Yervant1]

Kangaroo justice!!!!!!!!!!

KEY SUSPECT IN HRANT DINK MURDER TRIAL ERHAN TUNCEL RELEASED

17:58 â~@¢ 07.03.14

Erhan Tuncel, considered one of the key suspects in the retrial into
the murder of Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, was released
by an Istanbul court on March 7, the Hurriyet Daily News reports.

Erhan Tuncel was one of the key names suspected of planning the murder
and was acquitted in the first trial, sparking an outcry.

The original prosecutor in charge of the trial, which resumed on Sept.

17, 2013, Muammer AkkaÅ~_, was dismissed as part of a wave of purges
within the judiciary.

Dink, the renowned editor-in-chief of Agos, which has been the voice of
Istanbul's small Armenian community for several decades, was shot dead
by Ogun Samast in front of his office in Istanbul on Jan. 19, 2007.

Samast was sentenced to over 22 years in jail for the murder, but
lawyers representing the Dink family have repeatedly expressed
their dismay over the way the investigations and the trial have
been conducted.

Armenian News - Tert.am

 

[Yervant1]

furkish justice is a kangaroo justice!!!!!!!!! Can you tell me that these killings were not sanctioned by the government of furkey?

 

Turkey frees five charged over 2007 murders of Christian missionaries

12:29 ¢ 09.03.14


A Turkish court has freed five men accused of torturing and murdering
three Christian missionaries in 2007, after the suspects' time in
detention while on trial exceeded new legal limits, the Hurriyet Daily
News reports.

The men walked free from their high-security prison in the eastern
city of Malatya on March 7, DoÄ?an News Agency reported.

German missionary Tilmann Geske and Turkish converts Necati Aydın and
UÄ?ur Yüksel had their throats slit in the Zirve Publishing House in
April 2007 after being tied up and interrogated about missionary
activities.

The three victims were members of the city's tiny Protestant
community. The trial of the five men accused of the attack is still
going on seven years later.

Under a new law passed by the Turkish parliament last month, the
detention limit for suspects on trial who have not yet been convicted
was lowered to five years, paving the way for the five accused to be
released on bail.

The murders at the time fuelled fear among Turkey's tiny Christian
minorities and raised concern over rising nationalism and hostility
towards non-Muslims in Turkey, a mainly Muslim country seeking
European Union membership.


Armenian News - Tert.am

 

[Yervant1]

15:45 07/06/2014 » LAW

Turkish officials could face investigation over Hrant Dink murder

Key officials in Turkey could face a probe regarding the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink on charges of intent or negligence after an Istanbul court overturned a previous ruling, Hurriyet Daily reports, according to Asbarez.
An Istanbul court has lifted a previous decision, which has ruled that there was no need for sanctions against the former deputy governor of Istanbul, Ergun Güngör, Istanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah, former Istanbul Police Department Intelligence Head Ahmet İlhan Güler, and six police officers regarding the 2007 assassination.
The court recommended an investigation into nine officials following a European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) decision. A lawyer for the Dink family, Hasan Bakırcıoğlu, confirmed that it is now legally possible for a probe against Güngör, Cerrah, Güler, and six police officers.
Dink, the highly esteemed former editor-in-chief of weekly Agos, was murdered in broad daylight in front of his newspaper’s building on Jan. 19, 2007, by a 17-year-old Turkish nationalist. The triggerman, Ogün Samast, was convicted of premeditated murder and sentenced to 22 years and 10 months of prison after a two year-trial, but lawyers representing the Dink family have repeatedly expressed their dismay over the way the investigations and the trial were conducted.
His assassination sent shockwaves through Turkey and grew into a wider scandal after it emerged that the security forces knew of a plot to kill Dink, but failed to act.
Backing up widespread accusations of a state conspiracy, another key figure in the trial, Erhan Tuncel, claimed in December 2013 that he had informed the police of the plan, but that his warnings went unheeded.
There have been suggestions that the killing was a result of “deep state” work, but the court said there was no organization behind the murder. According to reports, Dink was called to a police department and “warned” about the plot against him, fueling belief that the murder was known by some institutions within the state beforehand.

Source: Panorama.am

[MosJan]

bayts turqi hamar inch tarberytyun hetaxuzel en, hetaqnnel en, tntghel yev prptel en.. inch tarberutuun inq@ / irenq vorj en , isk mer Hrant@ voch, yev amne angam Hrani masin nyuter mejtegh galuts kartses norits en spanum iren.. mez el hishetsnum vor karrogh en yev menq voching chenq karrogh anel

[Yervant1]

And the Genocide continuous, at least in their minds waiting for a chance to make it real!

PRO-ERDOGAN GROUP HACKS ARMENIAN WEEKLY'S WEBSITE, THREATENS COMMUNITY WITH 'ERADICATION'

15:34 â~@¢ 09.07.14

The website of the weekly Armenian newspaper Agos was hacked in the
late hours of July 8, posting a message and a photo of Prime Minister
Recep Erdogan with an Ottoman stamp in the background, the Hurriyet
Daily News reports.

The hackers, calling themselves "Herakles Fearlesleon," threatened to
"eradicate" the community and accused it of "treason," while also
sending messages of support to Erdogan.

"We have seen a lot of traitors like you. We know what you did and what
you will do in the future. But from now on the great Ottoman state will
be reborn with the master Recep Tayyip Erdogan," a first message read.

"Anti-Armenia, Anti-U.S., Anti-Israel. We will eradicate you," it
also stated.

A second message on the website's main page contained more hate speech
against the community, quoting a statement allegedly attributed to
the killer of Agos's former editor-in-chief, Hrant Dink.

"Even if there is only one Turk remaining in the world, he will be
chasing you," the message said.

The Agos website had still not been entirely fixed on July 9.

http://www.tert.am/en/news/2014/07/09/agos/

 

[Yervant1]

Turkey to portray Diaspora Armenians as 'sectarians': scholar

http://media.pn.am/media/issue/181/023/photo/181023.jpg

July 24, 2014 - 10:30 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Seven years have passed since Hrant Dink’s assassination and those who planned his murder remain free. While the search for justice continues with a second round of trials, there seems to be insufficient political will to uncover the truth, Taner Akcam, Professor of Armenian Genocide Studies at the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Clark University, writes.

"Hrant Dink was killed in revenge for the assassination of Talat *****, the architect of the Armenian Genocide. Everything about his murder suggested a “vengeance operation” for the 1921 conspiracy to assassinate Talat ***** in Berlin. This, for example, accounts for the decision to murder Hrant Dink in public rather than to kidnap him, kill him, and throw his remains in some remote location—the way all the other “unknown perpetrator” crimes have been committed in Turkey. The conspirators deliberately chose to come up from behind and to shoot him in the head on the street, in front of Agos, the newspaper he edited. The operation mirrored precisely how Talat ***** was killed. His attackers wanted revenge for the murder of Talat *****, and they did so by targeting Hrank Dink.In the Shadow of 1915: Reflections on Hrant’s Assassination,"Akcam writes in a piece titled "In the Shadow of 1915: Reflections on Hrant’s Assassination".

"Ninety years of state-sponsored denial have so blinded the public that we cannot conceive of the relationship between the 1915 genocide and the murder of Hrant Dink. But while the Turkish government has pushed us to forget the events of 1915, state officials have not forgotten. Turks grow uneasy at the mention of “genocide,” and calls for “genocide recognition” cause us to flee in terror before some unknown retribution. We resist using Hrant’s death as an opportunity to face up to history, to see the connection between that history and the killing of an Armenian newspaper editor. We are made to forget Hrant although he is the key—the key to the 40th chamber in the Arabian Nights fable, the one that others do not want opened, the key that is given to the heroes of those tales. We have a treasure chamber in our old houses where all of our secrets are kept. And Hrant is the key to that room. If the Hrant Dink murder case is ever solved, the secrets behind the establishment of the Turkish Republic will be revealed. But, sadly, in the present government, there is neither the courage nor the will to furnish the key, because the government is heir to these “state traditions,” and the “keepers of its secrets”," he writes.

Ancam predicts that as 2015 approaches, Turkey will attempt to create an atmosphere of “reconciliation.”

"Appearing ready to resolve the Armenian issue, Turkey will portray Armenians in the diaspora as uncompromising “sectarians.” For this purpose, the Turkish state will undertake a search for so-called “Good Armenians”—and it will find them! It will use these puppets as a counter-weight to the “intransigent,” “belligerent,” and “uncompromising” Armenians in the diaspora. They will seek to pit their “Good” Armenians against the “Bad” Armenians of the diaspora. And they will use Hrant for this purpose, too. They will find the criticisms Hrant leveled at the Armenian Diaspora and use them without hesitation. Hrant’s own words will be exploited as a part of a new wave of hostility toward the Armenian Diaspora," he writes, warning: "Do not be duped by this cynical scenario."

"Hrant Dink was murdered because he wanted to deconstruct Turkey’s founding myths. Those who planned the murder—the real culprits—have received promotions and praise for doing so. The sensitivity the government expressed over the confiscation of Armenian property was never shown toward the lives of Armenians. On the contrary, they oversaw the annihilation of a people. And the situation today is not so different! 1.5 million-plus-1," Akcam writes.

[Yervant1]

In the Shadow of 1915: Reflections on Hrant's Assassination

By Taner Akcam on July 21, 2014


The Armenian Weekly April 2014 Magazine


Seven years have passed since Hrant Dink's assassination and those who
planned his murder remain free. While the search for justice continues
with a second round of trials, there seems to be insufficient
political will to uncover the truth. With these new trials, I am
reminded of Karl Marx's famous adage about history repeating
itself'the first time as tragedy, the second as farce. Frustrating as
this may be, political will is precisely what prevents the Turkish
justice system from discovering the guilty parties.

Friends and admirers of Hrant are understandably angry: How can the
conspirators responsible for his assassination still be unknown? How
can a single murder case last so long? The reasons are suggested in a
`Tweet' posted by Prime Ministerial Advisor Hamdi Kilic on Jan. 2,
2014: `There is something known as `state tradition' in this country;
it still exists. It's enough to read a little history to understand
this.'

Kilic is right; the obstruction of justice in the Hrant Dink case is
one of these disturbing `reflexes.' If we had simply read a little
history, we would have understood what was transpiring in the trials
of Hrant's attackers. For a long time, Turks protesting Hrant's murder
resisted seeing the connection with the Armenian Genocide of 1915.
Some were even angered by those who tried to suggest such a link. Yet,
his assassins were well aware of this connection, and that is why they
killed him. In deconstructing some of the founding myths of the
Turkish state, Hrant threatened its traditions, and that is why his
real killers remain free. His murder, as Kilic recognized, was an
example of the Turkish state's `traditional' reflexes.



Hrant murdered in revenge for Talat *****

Hrant Dink was killed in revenge for the assassination of Talat *****,
the architect of the Armenian Genocide. Everything about his murder
suggested a `vengeance operation' for the 1921 conspiracy to
assassinate Talat ***** in Berlin. This, for example, accounts for the
decision to murder Hrant Dink in public rather than to kidnap him,
kill him, and throw his remains in some remote location'the way all
the other `unknown perpetrator' crimes have been committed in Turkey.
The conspirators deliberately chose to come up from behind and to
shoot him in the head on the street, in front of Agos, the newspaper
he edited. The operation mirrored precisely how Talat ***** was
killed. His attackers wanted revenge for the murder of Talat *****,
and they did so by targeting Hrank Dink.

As 2015 approaches¦ the Turkish state will undertake a search for
so-called `Good Armenians''and it will find them! It will use these
puppets as a counter-weight to the `intransigent,' `belligerent,' and
`uncompromising' Armenians in the diaspora.

We know that when Yasin Hayal, one of Hrant's assassins, was released
from prison after serving his sentence for the 2004 McDonalds bombing
in Trabzon, he spoke with his father about Talat *****. `Do you know
how Talat ***** was killed?' he asked his father, adding, `Did you
know that the person who killed Talat ***** wasn't punished? He was
set free.'

Soghomon Tehlirian, a young man who witnessed the murder of his family
during the genocide, assassinated Talat ***** in broad daylight on
March 15, 1921, on a Berlin street. The assailant approached Talat
and, after confirming his identity, fired his pistol at the former
Ottoman Interior Minister's head. Hrant was killed in the same
fashion.

This isn't the only similarity between the killings: Although
Tehlirian attempted to flee the scene of the crime, he was quickly
apprehended. In fact, those who planned the attack on Talat wanted him
to remain at the scene and to surrender himself to the authorities.
Likewise, documents connected to the investigation surrounding Hrant
Dink's murder suggest that the plan was for his young assailant, Ogun
Samast, to remain at the murder scene instead of fleeing. Everything
was supposed to be just as in 1921. The aim was both to take revenge
for Talat *****'s murder and to remind the Armenians that the genocide
of 1915 had been carried out in order to silence them. The plotters
were saying, `We established this Republic on the foundation of the
Armenians' annihilation, and since 1915 we do not give Armenians the
right to speak freely on these lands.'



Muammer Guler and Dr. Resit

The case of Dr. Mehmed Resit, the Unionist governor of Diyarbakir
during the Armenian Genocide, further demonstrates the connection
between the events of 1915 and the murder of Hrant Dink. I would like
to compare this man, who was personally responsible for the deaths of
tens of thousands of innocent Armenians, with Muammer Guler, who was
the governor of Istanbul at the time of Hrant's assassination in 2007
and was complicit in creating a climate conducive to the crime. It is
then possible to extend the comparison of past and present figures to
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Talat *****. The comparison works despite the
fact that Prime Minister Erdogan attempted to resolve the Kurdish
problem through peaceful means and has apologized'albeit
half-heartedly and with the actual intention of needling the
Republican Peoples Party and earning credit with voters'on behalf of
the state for the massacres at Dersim in 1937-38.

In July 1915, the German Consul at Mosul reported to his superiors
that some 2,000 Christians in Mardin and Diyarbakir, the majority of
them Armenians, had been taken from their cities overnight and
`slaughtered like sheep.'1 The consul claimed to have received this
information from the district governor of Mardin and demanded that
measures be taken to prevent such crimes. The German Embassy in
Istanbul passed the information on to Interior Minister Talat *****,
who then sent a cable to Governor Mehmed Resit, in which he repeated
the information he had received, including the phrase `slaughtered
like sheep.' Clarifying the target of the massacres, he issued the
following order: `It is categorically prohibited for disciplinary
measures imposed in regard to the Armenians to be implemented against
other Christians.' And he demanded an immediate cessation to such
measures `that might endanger the lives of [other] Christians.'2

Despite this cable, the indiscriminate massacres of Christians in the
Diyarbakir province continued. In a July 22 telegram, Talat wrote to
Dr. Resit stressing that the government's policy of annihilation
should be implemented against the Armenians, and no other Christians.
He mentioned that `complaints are being received' and ordered the
provincial governor to cease this practice, which `will put us in a
difficult situation.'3

Armenians seeking recognition of the Armenian Genocide seek justice.
Turks striving for democracy and human rights strive for freedom. The
relationship between these goals is complex because they address
separate problems. The attainment of one does not automatically bring
about the righting of past injustices.

Nonetheless, Resit continued the massacres without differentiating
between Armenians and other Christians. Finally, on Aug. 2, Talat sent
a third telegram, complaining that reports of massacres continued to
be received and that, `despite our having sent numerous cables, the
Christians in the province continue to be killed.' He repeated that
the government viewed the situation as intolerable. In the message,
Talat reminded Resit that he was an official of the state and `as a
[state] official, he was therefore obligated to carry out the orders
he received without exception.' Finally, there was an explicit
warning: Resit would be held directly responsible `for all activities
and incidents by bandits and armed gangs.'4

These cables were transmitted in coded form. Their content was
intelligible to only a few people, including Talat, Resit, and the
government functionaries who sent or decoded them. No investigations
transpired and no sanctions were imposed against Dr. Resit as a
consequence of opposing or ignoring government orders that resulted in
upwards of 2,000 persons being `slaughtered like sheep.' Indeed, the
outcomes were the very opposite. Hilmi, the Mardin District's
official, who was opposed to the murderous actions of Governor Resit
and who informed the German Consul of these crimes, was removed from
his position.5 Even more significant, on account of their `successful'
implementation of anti-Armenian policies in Diyarbakir, the security
personnel who worked under Resit were awarded medals. A July 28, 1915
telegram orders the `promotion of some of the police and commissars
who were instrumental in the arrest of Armenian committee leaders and
other members in the province of Diyarbakir;' others received monetary
awards or medals.6

Resit, who deported and killed thousands of Syriac and Armenian
Christians from Diyarbakir and its environs, was eventually called to
account'not for the mass murders he had ordered, but for keeping
precious jewelry and other valuables from the deportation. An official
message demanded that he `send to the capital' the confiscated items,
as he had promised. An Oct. 6, 1915 telegram, with the special note
`to be handled personally,' informed Resit that the government `has
received reports that you have confiscated' monies, jewels, and other
items belonging `to the Armenians who were deported and subjected to
attack on the way.' The cable demanded information on the amount of
gold and jewelry present, as well as the manner in which their records
were kept. The subject that interested Talat was not the annihilation
of these Christians, but the fate of the valuables confiscated from
them.7

Eventually, Resit was rewarded with an appointment as governor of
Ankara in recognition of his services. Yet, he was ultimately removed
from this post and subjected to a criminal investigation for the
misappropriation of the confiscated Armenian property and possessions.
It seems that Resit attempted to purchase a seaside mansion in
Istanbul with the Armenian jewelry he had confiscated, but when Talat
caught word of this he had him removed from his position. The
journalist Suleyman Nazif summed up the situation succinctly: `The
same Resit that Talat ***** had esteemed as a murderer¦he removed from
office for being a thief.'8 As Prime Ministerial Advisor Hamdi Kilic
said, `There is something known as `state tradition' in this country;
it still exists. It's enough to read a little history to understand
this.' History shows that while the Armenian Genocide was taking
place, the state praised Resit and others for murdering Christians,
but condemned him for theft.

Returning to the comparison between Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler
and Diyarabakir Governor Mehmed Resit, we find a similar lack of
accountability. Like Resit, Guler was never called to account for the
murder, but rather was rewarded for his loyal service'first with a
seat as an AKP parliamentarian and later, by being appointed as
Interior Minister. Ironically, he too was subsequently removed from
his post for bribery and corruption. Nor was the situation different
in the case of the police officials involved in Hrant's case. All
received promotions in the wake of the murder, just as in Diyarbakir
in 1915. With history as our guide, we can appreciate why the real
culprits in Hrant Dink's murder have not been found.

Ninety years of state-sponsored denial have so blinded the public that
we cannot conceive of the relationship between the 1915 genocide and
the murder of Hrant Dink. But while the Turkish government has pushed
us to forget the events of 1915, state officials have not forgotten.
Turks grow uneasy at the mention of `genocide,' and calls for
`genocide recognition' cause us to flee in terror before some unknown
retribution. We resist using Hrant's death as an opportunity to face
up to history, to see the connection between that history and the
killing of an Armenian newspaper editor. We are made to forget Hrant
although he is the key'the key to the 40th chamber in the Arabian
Nights fable, the one that others do not want opened, the key that is
given to the heroes of those tales. We have a treasure chamber in our
old houses where all of our secrets are kept. And Hrant is the key to
that room. If the Hrant Dink murder case is ever solved, the secrets
behind the establishment of the Turkish Republic will be revealed.
But, sadly, in the present government, there is neither the courage
nor the will to furnish the key, because the government is heir to
these `state traditions,' and the `keepers of its secrets.'



Hrant and the diaspora

I predict that as 2015 approaches, Turkey will attempt to create an
atmosphere of `reconciliation.' Appearing ready to resolve the
Armenian issue, Turkey will portray Armenians in the diaspora as
uncompromising `sectarians.' For this purpose, the Turkish state will
undertake a search for so-called `Good Armenians''and it will find
them! It will use these puppets as a counter-weight to the
`intransigent,' `belligerent,' and `uncompromising' Armenians in the
diaspora. They will seek to pit their `Good' Armenians against the
`Bad' Armenians of the diaspora. And they will use Hrant for this
purpose, too. They will find the criticisms Hrant leveled at the
Armenian Diaspora and use them without hesitation. Hrant's own words
will be exploited as a part of a new wave of hostility toward the
Armenian Diaspora.

Do not be duped by this cynical scenario! Hrant criticized certain
circles within the Armenian Diaspora, and some Diasporan Armenians
criticized him. But he did so because he recognized that some diaspora
groups could not see that the final struggle for the recognition of
the Armenian Genocide would ultimately be fought and won within Turkey
itself, in Anatolia. When we spoke by telephone, he frequently urged
me to `tell those friends of yours that they should come and be part
of the struggle here. The genocide took place on these lands, and its
recognition will also occur here.'

Diasporan Armenians don't readily appreciate that the struggle for
recognition of the genocide is linked to the struggle for democracy in
Turkey. At the same time, some Turks fail to grasp that the diaspora's
struggle to attain recognition is part of the Turkish struggle for
democracy. The majority of those in the diaspora are uninterested in
the Turkish struggle to achieve democracy and human rights; and many
struggling for democracy within Turkey are hostile toward the Armenian
Diaspora's insistence on genocide recognition.

These tensions derive from the conflation of complementary goals.
Armenians seeking recognition of the Armenian Genocide seek justice.
Turks striving for democracy and human rights strive for freedom. The
relationship between these goals is complex because they address
separate problems. The attainment of one does not automatically bring
about the righting of past injustices. The United States, for example,
is a free and democratic country, yet its Native American population
continues to pursue justice. And the search for justice by the
indigenous peoples of Australia and Canada also continues. Thus, we
need to both see and understand this one thing: In Turkey today it is
essential that we not juxtapose freedom and justice; we must instead
create a shared language and intellectual foundation in our search for
both. We do not have to sacrifice one in our search for the other.

Hrant sought to construct a shared language for his struggle and that
of the diaspora. He dreamed of staging a large diaspora conference for
this purpose. Hrant's murder demonstrated the absolute necessity for
this `shared language,' as well as the error of attempting to conceive
of the struggle for freedom in Turkey at the expense of recognition
and acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide. It has shown us that
this recognition must be a shared demand of people in both the
diaspora and in Turkey. The struggles for freedom and justice complete
one another and must not be seen as either contradicting or opposing.
If we understand what Hrant was trying to do, we must bring together
these two struggles as one: the diaspora's demand for recognition of
the Armenian Genocide with the struggle in Turkey for human rights and
democracy. Those wishing for a democratic Turkey that respects human
rights must merge their struggle with that of the Armenian Diaspora.
They must invite diasporans to Turkey and join their struggle to have
the Armenian Genocide recognized abroad. And they must remember: The
Armenian Diaspora is not their enemy but their friend, a valuable
colleague who, due to the decades of denial by the Turkish state, has
unfortunately grown accustomed to looking at things through cynical
and mistrusting eyes.

If Hrant had lived, he would have joined the Armenian Diaspora. This
is not idle speculation; I know of that which I speak. Hrant was never
ignorant of 1915 the way many of us were. Every day of his life, he
experienced the connection between the genocide and what he had to
face; he felt it in his very bones. When his sentence was approved, he
was serious about wanting to leave Turkey and walking, with his entire
family, from his hometown of Malatya, on the path of deportation taken
by his ancestors, all the way to the Der-Zor desert in northeastern
Syria. `Just like my forefathers, they don't want me to remain here,'
he would say. `And if so, then there's no point in my doing so. I'll
travel the path that they took.' In other words, Hrant saw the
Armenian Diaspora as one of his options. With him, we must understand
that some categories are meaningless and incorrect, like the
categorization of a monolithic Armenian Diaspora, single-mindedly
fixed on revenge and of the overarching conception of the `evil Turk.'
These need to be discarded into the dustbin of history.



Hrant and the word `genocide'

When speaking with Turks, Hrant was polite and gracious enough to
avoid the word `genocide.' `I know what was done to my people,' he
would say, `but if my use of the word `genocide' will be used against
me as an excuse not to listen to the things I have to say, then I
won't use it.' Despite his extreme sensitivity and gentility in the
matter, the authorities wanted to punish him anyway, claiming that he
had used it'once! Before he was murdered, Hrant told me that he wanted
to turn his trial for using the word `genocide' into an historical
showcase. `I will state that `Yes, 1915 was a genocide,' and I will
then turn the trial into a history course.' But they didn't give him
the chance.

Hrant Dink was murdered because he wanted to deconstruct Turkey's
founding myths. Those who planned the murder'the real culprits'have
received promotions and praise for doing so. The sensitivity the
government expressed over the confiscation of Armenian property was
never shown toward the lives of Armenians. On the contrary, they
oversaw the annihilation of a people. And the situation today is not
so different! 1.5 million-plus-1. Hrant is the `plus-1.' Failing to
recognize this, we cannot understand the crime or hope to solve it. As
we approach the year 2015, the 100-year anniversary of the Armenian
deportations and genocide, we won't be able to confront this crime
without first admitting to ourselves that, `Yes, 1915 was a genocide
and it must be acknowledged as such.' And that `Hrant was murdered
because he reminded us of the million-plus Hrants of 1915.'

Let Hrant Dink be a symbol for us. Let him be our Martin Luther King.
Even as others in the past have gathered closely around Talat *****
and his ilk, and even as they today gather around Erdogan and his, let
us hold fast to Hrant. Let Hrant and the `1.5 million-plus-1' be our
point of divergence between our republic and their republic. This is
the only way that we can claim our Islamic selves, our Turkishness
and/or our Kurdishness from the hands of murders 'those of yesterday
and of today.



Notes

[1]) The full text of the telegram reads: `Reshid Bey, the Governor of
Diyarbakir, is raging among the Christians of his province like a
champion bloodhound; he recently had a gendarmerie [force] specially
dispatched from Diyarbakir collect 700 Christians (mostly Armenians)
in Mardin¦in one night and allowed them to be slaughtered like sheep.
Reshid Bey is continuing his murderous work against innocent persons,
with the district governor [of Mardin] having assured me that the
number of his victims has exceeded 2,000.' (DE/PA-AA/BoKon/169, From
the Vice-Consul in Mosul (Holstein) to the Embassy in Constantinople,
Mosul, July 10, 1915; URL:
http://www.armenocide.net/armenocide/armgende.nsf/$AllDocs/1915-07-10-DE-011).

2) Here is the full text of the telegram: `Since the disciplinary and
political measures adopted vis-aÌ-vis the Armenians do not in any way
apply to the other Christians, an immediate end should be put to such
events, which will have an extremely negative effect on public opinion
and which randomly threaten the lives of Christians in particular;
please provide an accurate report of the present situation.' Thus the
policies deliberately enacted against the Armenians were explicitly to
exclude other Christian groups. BOA/DH.ŞFR, no. 54/406, coded
telegram from Interior Minister Talat to the province of Diyarbakir,
dated July 12, 1915.

3) Here is the full text of the telegram: `Despite the firm and
explicit instructions within the province,' he wrote, `one hears that
operations have been undertaken against the Armenians and all other
Christian [groups] without exception, and that this situation, which
was repeatedly a cause for complaint, is now spreading to the
surrounding provinces. The continuation of this situation¦which will
leave the government in a difficult position in the future, is
entirely unacceptable.' BOA/DH.ŞFR, no. 54-A/73, coded telegram from
Interior Minister Talat to the province of Diyarbakir, dated July 22,
1915.

4) Here is the full text of telegram: `Despite firm and explicit
instructions, certain armed gangs within the province have continued
persecuting and killing Christians' and that, `as it was previously
announced, the continuation of this situation is absolutely
unacceptable¦ It must not be forgotten that as a responsible
representative of the present government, you are obliged to carry out
the orders and instructions that are handed down from here,
unconditionally and in accordance with our interpretation [of their
meaning].' Talat concluded with a clear warning that his governor
would be held responsible `for every action and incident in which
bandits or armed gangs are involved.' BOA/DH.ŞFR, no. 54-A/248, coded
telegram from Interior Minister Talat to the province of Diyarbakir,
dated Aug. 2, 1915.

5) David Gaunt, Massacres, Resistance, Protectors:Muslim-Christian
Relations in Eastern Anatolia during World War I (Gorgias Press: New
Jersey, 2006), 170.

6) BOA/DH.EUM.MEM, no. 2042/67/31/1333.N.15, July 28, 1915.

7) Here is the full text of the telegram: `It has been reported by
parliamentary deputies that the money, jewels, and other possessions
belonging to the Armenians who were deported and attacked along the
way have not been lost but rather secured and sent to the capital due
to the measures that you have taken. Please report back on the
quantity [of valuables] and the manner in which they were recorded.'
BOA/DH.ŞFR, no. 56/315, coded telegram from the Interior Ministry to
the province of Diyarbakir, dated Oct. 6, 1915.

8) Hadisat, Feb. 8, 1919.

http://www.armenianweekly.com/2014/07/21/shadow-1915-reflections-hrants-assassination/

[Yervant1]

Dink's Lawyer Says Erdogan Covering Up Case

Thursday, July 31st, 2014
http://asbarez.com/125525/dinks-lawyer-says-erdogan-covering-up-case/


Activists demonstrate outside of a coutrhouse in Istanbul ahead of
hearings on Hrant Dink's murder. Jan. 7, 2014. (Photo: Hurriyet)


ISTANBUL (Today's Zaman)'Fethiye Çetin, an attorney representing the
family of slain Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, slammed Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an on Thursday for his recent remarks about
the Dink murder case and claimed that the government is trying to
protect those who were involved in the assassination.

According to news portal T24, Çetin criticized ErdoÄ?an for saying that
the Hrant Dink case was merely personal and not a complex plan,
saying: `The prime minister is protecting his staff [government
officials] with those words. For example, [former Interior Minister]
Muammer Güler is still a deputy of the Justice and Development Party
[AK Party]. Furthermore, Engin Dinç is chief of intelligence. We also
have Celalettin Cerrah, ReÅ?at Altay¦ The list can go on. ErdoÄ?an said
those words in order to protect those people and many more.'

Former Trabzon intelligence chief Engin Dinç, who has been accused of
obstructing justice in the Hrant Dink case, was assigned to be the
intelligence chief of the National Police Department. Cerrah is a
former Istanbul police chief and Altay was the chief of police in
Trabzon at the time of the murder.

Presidential candidate and Prime Minister ErdoÄ?an made a statement to
the Vatan daily last week while on his way back from an election rally
in Diyarbakır. `The Hrant Dink case was personal. It is not possible
to compare that with the parallel state [referring to the Hizmet
movement--a civil society organization that ErdoÄ?an has claimed seeks
to overthrow his government]. This parallel state is a security issue.
They [Hizmet movement] intend to take control of government
institutions. It would be a mistake to compare the Dink matter with
the parallel state,' ErdoÄ?an said.

Çetin has claimed that ErdoÄ?an called Hrant Dink's family after the
assassination in 2007 and told them that he was being targeted, too.
`In a phone call to Hrant Dink's family, ErdoÄ?an said that those who
murdered Hrant Dink were after him, too. Now I want to ask ErdoÄ?an a
question. Are those who want to kill him just three youngsters? Is it
that simple? Furthermore, how can a person who is running for
president comment so easily on an ongoing investigation?' Çetin asked.

Claiming that the prime minister used the Dink case as political
material in order to weaken his enemies, Çetin said that ErdoÄ?an has
decided not to manipulate the case further for now. `ErdoÄ?an brought
the opposition to its knees. He either put them in prison or he has
them under great pressure. That is why he is no longer using the Dink
case as political material. He used Dink in order to start the
Ergenekon investigation [an investigation of a criminal network that
started five years ago]. But obviously, he does not need it anymore.
If he needs it in the future; however, I believe he could use it
again.' Çetin added.

Dink was shot and killed by an ultra-nationalist teenager in broad
daylight seven years ago. The hitman, Ogün Samast, and 18 others were
brought to trial. During the process, the lawyers for the Dink family
and the co-plaintiffs in the case presented evidence indicating that
Samast did not act alone. Another suspect, Yasin Hayal, was given life
in prison for inciting Samast to murder. However, Erhan Tuncel, who
worked as an informant for the Trabzon Police Department, was found
not guilty of the murder.

Rober KoptaÅ?, editor-in-chief of the bilingual Armenian weekly Agos,
where Hrant Dink was editor-in-chief before his murder, also made a
statement to the T24 news portal on Thursday, saying: `It seems like
the prime minister is not afraid of anything or anyone on his way to
Çankaya [presidential palace] from KasımpaÅ?a [the Ä°stanbul district
where ErdoÄ?an grew up], but look how he has ended up. The Hrant Dink
assassination is an obvious source of fear for him. In order to cover
up the case, ErdoÄ?an is trying to leave the Hizmet movement holding
the bag. This is a perfect example of Erdogan's U-turn,' KoptaÅ? said
in his statement.

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Sezgin
Tanrıkulu also criticized ErdoÄ?an on Wednesday for his recent remarks
on the Dink case, claiming that the government is trying to bury the
case.

In a written statement released on Wednesday, Tanrıkulu accused
ErdoÄ?an of not taking any concrete steps in order to capture the
players behind the scenes in the Dink murder. `Dink's assassination
was not a result of personal enmity. It was nothing but an organized
crime. Although Prime Minister ErdoÄ?an knows about every single person
involved in this murder, the real players still got away with what
they did. Only the gunman was sentenced to a prison term,' Tanrıkulu
said in his written statement