PROTESTS AGAINST CUMHURIYET JOURNALIST’S DISMISSAL
Erol Onderoglu

BIA Net, Turkey
Nov 12 2007

The "We Want Our Future" Istanbul Initiative protested against the
dismissal of journalist Erdogan Aydin; the Tunceli Bar Association
has called for a review of the decision.

At a protest in front of the Cumhuriyet newspaper office yesterday
(11 November), the "We Want Our Future" Istanbul Initiative condemned
journalist Erdogan Aydin’s dismissal from the newspaper after he took
part in a discussion programme on the pro-Kurdish Roj TV channel.

Around thirty people shouted the slogan "Erdogan is enlightened
("aydin"), Cumhuriyet is dark". In a press statement, the initiative
accused the Cumhuriyet, Vakit and Zaman newspapers of "collaborating
as war hawks when it comes to nationalism", saying "they have joined
the holy alliance against freedoms".

The religious Vakit and Zaman newspapers had reported of Aydin’s
participation in the discussion programme in a distorted manner.

Targeting intellectuals threatens their lives

The statement also said, "We oppose the bigoted lynching attempts
supported by the Cumhuriyet newspaper, which is progressive only in
words, not in essence, with worry."

The group declared that as they represented the future of the country,
they did not want any "democrat, intellectual and real patriot" to
suffer for their ideas. Aziz Nesin, the Alevi writer who survived an
arson attack in which 33 writers, singers and intellectuals were killed
in Sivas in 1993, and Hrant Dink, the Turkish-Armenian journalist who
was murdered on 19 January this year, were given as examples of what
happens when intellectuals are targeted.

The Cumhuriyet newspaper was likened to "a ship that is constantly
being pulled to the right"; the initiative criticised it for praising
the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), for supporting capitalism,
and for opting for a military rather than a democratic solution to
the Kurdish question.

Letter by Tunceli Bar Association

In a letter sent to the newspaper, the Tunceli Bar Association has
called for a review of Aydin’s dismissal.

In the letter it says, "It is known that the Cumhuriyet
newspaper, which is as old as Turkey, has overcome many dangers
in terms of freedom of thought and democracy. There are still many
progressive-democratic and socialist writers on the newspaper. Seeing
as this is the case, it is in one word shameful that the newspaper
management has signed [the dismissal]."

The letter added: "We cannot understand how a newspaper which lost
people like (murdered) Ugur Mumcu and Ahmet Taner Kislali cannot
tolerate an Erdogan Aydin." (EO/AG)

ple/102843/protests-against-cumhuriyet-journalists -dismissal