AUTHOR NAOMI KLEIN SUPPORTS DINK’S MESSAGE

Asbarez
Jan 25th, 2010

ISTANBUL (Hurriyet)-Hrant Dink was a model of integrity because he
not only fought for a certain group but he fought for all groups,
anti-globalist activist and journalist Naomi Klein said Monday at a
seminar in Istanbul.

"When I did some reading about Dink I was struck to learn that he
was not only opposing racism against just Armenians but against all
people," Klein said, adding that what Dink seemed more preoccupied
with was not his own victimization, but whether what he said could
be perceived as something racist.

Klein spoke at a seminar at Bogazici University titled "The Power of
Being Consistent: Insisting on Palestinian Humanity in the Western
Media." The seminar was organized as part of a conference held in
memory of slain Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink. "He is now
part of [Turkey’s] collective history," Klein said.

"If a journalist was killed in front of his own newspaper, every
journalist, wherever they live, would react to it," Klein said,
adding that she had not met Dink. "[They] wanted to silence Dink,
but at his funeral [they] saw that his voice was becoming stronger,"
Klein told Hurriyet in an exclusive interview prior to the seminar.

Klein said rather than eliminating Dink’s freedom of speech, what
hurt him the most was to show him as an enemy to Turks, according
to what she read about him. "If I made a very small contribution to
keeping his name alive, I would be so happy. We can rebel against the
bullet he was shot with by keeping him alive," she said, adding that
she thought the aim of his murder was to make him be forgotten.

As a Jew from Canada, it is risky to criticize Israel, Klein added.

"Maybe I am not afraid of being shot for criticizing Israel, but
there are certain methods to be punished. For instance, there are
people who cannot find a job because they criticized Israel," she said.

According to Klein, the best way she can honor Dink’s life is to risk
herself and speak out against Israel. "There is not much difference
between the reaction Israel gives to Palestinians defending human
rights and the reaction against Dink," she said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress