TURKISH AUTHOR FACES CRIMINAL CHARGES

United Press International
Sept 1 2005

Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk faces three years in prison if convicted
on charges of “public denigrating of Turkish identity,” his publisher
says.

Pamuk, 53, was charged after a Swiss interview in which he said
discussing certain topics such as the 1915 Armenian massacre and the
war with the Kurds were off-limits in his country, the Washington
Post reported Thursday.

Because no one talks about such topics, “therefore, I do,” he was
quoted as telling the newspaper Tages-Anzeiger in February.

Tugrul Pasaoglu, Pamuk’s publisher and an editor at the Istanbul
publishing house Iletisim Yayinlari, said the acclaimed novelist
faces trial for “public denigrating of Turkish identity” Dec. 16.

Pamuk’s attorney told the Post, “There is nothing that constitutes
a crime in this interview.”

Pamuk’s books including “My Name Is Red,” have been translated into
more than 20 languages.