CJR Daily, NY
Columbia Journalism Review
Jan 25 2007
A Murder, Then Progress?
In Memoriam: Hrant Dink (1954-2007)
Alia Malek
Friday’s murder of Armenian-Turkish editor and columnist Hrant Dink —
though not the only instance recently of a foreign journalist brutally
silenced — was different in that for those who follow global events
or the media, Dink’s name was familiar even before his death.
At a time when Turkey continues to struggle to join the European Union,
his prosecution (and arguably his persecution) under Turkish penal
code 301 that criminalizes insulting "Turkishness" — a law that stinks
of suppression of speech — had already made him a cause celebre.
Dink had been attacked by the Turkish Justice Ministry and Turkish
nationalists for advocating that Turkey acknowledge its role in the
Armenian genocide at the end of the Ottoman Empire during the first
World War, as a necessary prerequisite for Turkey moving forward
progressively and for a resumption of Turkish-Armenian relations.
His name was again in international papers in October, 2006 when he
lambasted a French parliamentary bill that penalized any denial that
Armenians were victims of a genocide. He was a champion of free speech
above all, and his commitment to seeing the genocide acknowledged
did not blind him to this larger principle. He considered the French
and Turkish laws as two sides of the same coin, saying that, "Those
who restrict freedom of expression in Turkey and those who try to
restrict it in France are of the same mentality."
Dink did not believe in holding a new generation of Turks responsible
for the actions of their ancestors; what he wanted was to move his
country into a new era of modernity, democracy, and celebration of
its multiethnic reality. Ironically, his death produced glimpses of
that vision, when thousands of Turks took to the streets the day of
his murder shouting, "We are all Armenian!" and when thousands more
attended his funeral, including government officials from Turkey and,
at Turkey’s invitation, from Armenia.
On many English-language Turkish blogs and Web sites, the killer
and his co-conspirators — who claimed to be acting as Turkish
nationalists — were denounced and Dink was hailed as the true
patriot. As important, the law under which Dink was prosecuted was
itself subjected to scrutiny.
There is no consolation for Dink’s death. And of course, many of
those who marched came from the cast of usual suspects — Kurds,
intellectuals, leftists, the so-called "White Turks." Moreover,
some of the slogans, such as "We are all Armenian" have brought
grumblings and, as reported in some Turkish-language papers, the
threat of more prosecutions under 301 (mentioned in haberturk.com,
the prominent online news hub). Still, the turnout for a funeral of
the man who was the public face of the Armenian community, has offered
hope of a conversation where before there was only denial. If that
conversation evolves, moving Turkey toward truth and reconciliation,
succeeding where external (and at times vitriolic) European efforts
have failed, then Dink’s memory can begin to be honored.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
