Armenpress
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY CONDEMNS HRANT DINK’S MURDER
YEREVAN, JANUARY 20, ARMENPRESS: The current EU
Presidency held by Germany expressed its "shock" over
the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink in Istanbul Friday.
"Hrant Dink was a courageous man whose journalism
was marked by a strong commitment to democracy and
freedom of expression," said an EU Presidency
statement.
It said the presidency was appalled by this
abominable killing, and called on Turkish authorities
to solve the case as quickly as possible.
Dink’s murder was condemned strongly by the Amnesty
International. The organization said it believes that
he was targeted because of his work as a journalist
who championed freedom of expression.
"This horrifying assassination silences one of
Turkey’s bravest human rights defenders," said Maureen
Greenwood-Basken, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA)
advocacy director for Europe and Central Asia.
The Armenian Assembly of America (AAA) and the
Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), two
most powerful American Armenian lobby organizations,
expressed their sadness over the tragic murder of one
of the most prominent Armenian voices in Turkey.
"The Armenian Assembly condemns this blatant
political assassination and mourns the loss of an
exceptional human being and civil rights advocate who,
well aware of the personal risks to him, was
determined to serve as a catalyst for mutual
understanding, tolerance and dialogue. Hrant Dink
consistently championed democratic change in Turkey.
He will always be remembered for his strong leadership
and commitment to human rights," AAA said in
statement.
"The Armenian National Committee of America mourns
the loss of Hrant Dink, a leading Istanbul-based
Armenian journalist murdered outside the offices of
his Agos newspaper amid a growing tide of official
Turkish government prosecutions and nationalist
pressure to silence his writings on the Armenian
Genocide. Hrant Dink’s murder is tragic proof that the
Turkish government – through its campaign of denial,
threats and intimidation against the recognition of
the Armenian Genocide – continues to fuel the same
hatred and intolerance that initially led to this
crime against humanity more than 90 years ago," said
ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian.
U.S. Congressman Adam Schiff has called on his
House colleagues to join with him in praising Hrant
Dink’s courage in confronting the facts of the
Armenian Genocide, and urging the Prime Minister of
Turkey to repeal the law under which Dink was
prosecuted.
Armenian president Robert Kocharian strongly
condemned the killing, saying through a spokesman that
Armenians hope that the Turkish authorities will
identify and punish the assassin.
For his part foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian
condemned Dink’s murder and called on Turkish
authorities to take swift action to identify those
responsible.
Also the Global Campaign for Free Expression
expressed its deep shock and sadness over the killing
of Hrant Dink. "Mr. Dink was one of the most outspoken
critics of Turkey’s actions between 1915 to 1923 when
hundreds of thousands of Turkey’s Armenian population
were killed or driven out of the country.
Increasingly, these events are being referred to as
the Armenian genocide by a range of international and
state actors," it said in a statement.
"I am profoundly shocked and saddened by the murder
of journalist and writer Hrant Dink. I join Prime
Minister Erdogan in condemnation of this heinous crime
and commend his pledge to bring the perpetrators to
justice" said Terry Davis, Secretary General of the
Council of Europe.
"Mr. Dink had the courage to write about a painful
period in the history of both Turkey and the whole
region. His works were always written in a sincere
spirit of reconciliation. Hrant Dink was targeted by
those who hated him for using his freedom of
expression and his freedom as a human being to help
his nation strengthen its commitment to European
values of tolerance and democracy. Mr. Dink will be
remembered for advancing the case of freedom of
expression in his country. It is important that
citizens in every country have the right to discuss
freely their national history," Terry Davis said in a
statement.
On Friday evening, thousands marched down the
street where Hrant Dink was killed, blocking traffic,
carrying posters of Dink and shouting slogans in favor
of free expression.