Swiss Say No Warrant for TTK Head Halacoglu
By Kemal Balci, TNA Parliamentary Bureau/ Ankara
The New Anatolian
June 3 2005
Switzerland’s govt officially announces that there’s no international
warrant for Professor Halacoglu and that there are no restrictions
on his international travel, including Switzerland
A document from the Swiss government submitted to the Justice Ministry
earlier this week revealed that there is no international arrest
warrant for Turkish Historical Society (TTK) Yusuf Halacoglu.
Switzerland’s government submitted the document, which can be
interpreted as an official guarantee to the ministry.
Justice Minister Cemil Cicek confirmed that Swiss Ambassador to Ankara
Walter B. Gyger paid a visit to his office to present the official
document, revealing that there are no restrictions on Halacoglu’s
international travel.
Cicek told The New Anatolian that Halacoglu had made a speech at an
international conference held a year ago in Winterthur, Switzerland
where he denied the Armenian genocide allegations.
“According to the information the ambassador conveyed, a Swiss citizen
present at the conference filed a complaint against Halacoglu. The
Prosecutors’ Office launched an investigation against him following
the complaint. But this investigation did not include a demand from
the Swiss government that Interpol issue a warrant for Halacoglu,”
said the justice minister.
The document from the Swiss government confirms that there are no
restrictions against Halacoglu in terms of international travel,
including travel to Switzerland itself.
The document includes the following information:
There is no international arrest warrant for Professor Halacoglu in
the context of the current investigation by the public prosecutor
in Winterthur. Therefore, there are no restrictions on Halacoglu’s
international travel.
There is also no national arrest warrant for Halacoglu in
Switzerland. Therefore, Halacoglu is free to enter and leave
Switzerland at any time.
It is in the competency of the public prosecutor’s office in Winterthur
to give further information about the state of their investigation
if deemed appropriate.