FIRST DAY OF PERINCEK TRIAL IN LAUSANNE; TURKISH SUPPORTERS DENIED ENTRY

Hurriyet, Turkey
March 7 2007

The first hearing in the trial of Dogu Perincek, the leader of the
Turkish Workers’ Party who has been charged by Swiss prosecutors
with publicly denying the Armenian genocide allegations, took place
yesterday in Lausanne, Switzerland.

A large contingency of Perincek supporters who left Turkey 2 days
ago to show support for Perincek during his trial were not allowed by
Swiss authorities into the courtroom yesterday. Turkish journalists
were also barred by security from entered the Lausanne Courthouse,
on grounds that written accreditation had not been received beforehand.

It is expected that Perincek’s trial will continue until March 9. If
found guilty, Perincek is to serve 3 years in prison and pay a heavy
financial fine.

In statements made earlier this week to the Swiss newspaper "Le
Matin," Perincek asserted that he had come prepared with many WWI-era
documents from various countries, and that he would prove in court
that what occured in Turkey during those contested years was not in
fact genocide.