Radio Netherlands, Netherlands
Jan 19 2008
Hopes fade for change in Turkey after Dink murder
Killing of Armenian journalist proves no watershedby Bernard Bouwman*
19-01-2008
The Turkish journalist of ethnic Armenian origin Hrant Dink was
assassinated in front of the offices of his Istanbul newspaper a year
ago by an ultra-nationalist Turkish minor. Images of his body lying
on the street shocked the country. One year ago, hundreds of
thousands of people demonstrated for a more open and tolerant Turkey
on the day of his funeral.
After the mass demonstrations many Turks believed that a turnaround
had taken place. They believed that the average citizens’ feelings of
revulsion to the tragic killing of Dink would make Turkey a better
country. They hoped the Turkish people would demand more democracy
and freedom.
Has Turkey become a better country? The answer is no. Nationalist
Turks still despise Armenians, who they consider traitors. Armenian
institutions in Istanbul still receive hate mail. A song which
glorified the killing of Dink quickly became a hit on the internet.
Attacks against Christians
It is not only the Armenian minority that continues to suffer. The
year 2007 saw a series of attacks against Christians. The most
shocking occurred in the city of Malatya, where people who printed
bibles had their throats cut.
Dink is said to have become a target because of his conviction by the
authorities under Article 301, which makes "insulting Turkishness" a
punishable offence. He was convicted for using the word genocide to
describe the mass killings of Armenians in 1915. The Turkish
government has repeatedly promised to abolish Article 301, but it
still remains on the books.
Complicity
An even more painful blot on Turkey’s democracy is that the police
appears to have been aware of plans to assassinate Dink. The Turkish
press received the transcript of an extremely incriminating telephone
conversation between a senior police official and one of the suspects
which took place after the killing. The official seemed to know the
details of the attack before it took place. Why was nothing done to
protect Dink? Was it due to complicity on the part of the Turkish
authorities who had no objection to the silencing of the journalist?
Perhaps the most tragic sign is that hardly anyone in Turkey believes
the case will ever be solved. The killing of Dink threatens to cast a
shadow over Turkey’s future.