NIS News Bulletin, Netherlands
March 16 2007
State Secretary Albayrak May Be Prosecuted In Turkey
THE HAGUE, 17/03/07 – Justice State Secretary Nebahat Albayrak may be
prosecuted in Turkey. A Turkish lawyer, Kemal Kerincsiz, wants to sue
her for insulting the Turkish identity.
Kerincsiz brought a case earlier against writer Orhan Pamuk and
journalist Hrant Dink, who was assassinated in January. In the case
of Dink, the case led to a conviction. An Istanbul court dropped the
case against Pamuk under international pressure.
As a Labour (PvdA) MP, Albayrak supported a motion in 2004 in which
the Lower House unanimously called on the Dutch government to press
for international recognition of the Armenian genocide. In Turkey, it
is forbidden to say that the Turkish regime massacred hundreds of
thousands of Armenians around 1915.
Kerincsiz said on TV programme Een Vandaag that Albayrak committed
treason against the Turkish state by supporting the motion. He
threatened to have her prosecuted for this. Albayrak in fact watered
down her views in 2006 by stating that it was not up to her but to
scientists and lawyers to judge whether genocide can technically be
spoken of.
Albayrak said via her spokesman she would wait and see whether a
complaint will actually follow. As well as Dutch nationality, she has
a Turkish passport. Party for Freedom (PVV) MP Geert Wilders has in
recent weeks cast doubts on her loyalty because she is also subject
to Turkish law. A Lower House majority considered this nonsense.
On Friday, Wilders requested clarification by the government about
the case Kerinsciz threatens to bring. If he does, Premier Jan Peter
Balkenende will have to press Albayrak to give up her Turkish
nationality after all or resign as state secretary, Wilders said in
written questions to the premier.
Home Affairs Minister Guusje ter Horst had repeated Thursday evening
that she considers the debate on dual nationality a "non-issue".
During a meeting in Amersfoort on cultural diversity within the
police, she said Turkish and Moroccan officers are just as loyal as
others. "We do not count passports, we count quality." Ter Horst
presented the 2007 Diversity Prize to the Amsterdam police corps.