Federation of Armenian Organisations of the Netherlands (FAON)
Address: Weesperstraat 91 – 2574 VS The Hague
Telephone: +31704490209
E-mail: [email protected]
Contact: M. Hakhverdian
PRESS RELEASE
The Hague, 25 October 2007
Dutch Parliament: Written Questions on Conviction of Arat Dink
This week Dutch MP Henk Jan Ormel of Christian Democratic Party (CDA)
submitted written questions to the Dutch Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs Frans Timmermans (Labour Party, PvdA), about recent conviction of
Arat Dink, the son of assassinated Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink,
according to Article 301 of Turkish Penal Code, for offending Turkish
identity. Mr. Ormel asks whether the Secretary of State can explain why the
Turkish govenrment refuses to amend said Article.
Former Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ben Bot, has reassured the Dutch
parliament on several occasions in the past that the Article 301 was to be
amended in short term. Then he referred to personal promises made to him by
former Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs, now president Gul, as well as
by the Turkish ambassador in the Netherlands. Unfortunately, these promises
have been never kept.
Mr. Ormel also asks if the Secretary of State expects that the Turkish
parliament will be urged to make the amendment of the Article 301. Finally,
Mr. Ormel wants to know if Mr. Timmermans is going to urge Turkey again, in
the EU context, to amend Article 301.