Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Jan 18 2015

Slain Turkish-Armenian journalist commemorated at his grave

Slain Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, the editor-in-chief of
the Agos newspaper who was assassinated in broad daylight outside his
office on Jan. 19, 2007, was commemorated at his grave in Ä°stanbul on
Sunday, which marked the day before the eighth anniversary of his
murder.

Dozens of people, including his wife Rakel Dink and other members of
the Dink family, gathered at the Balıklı Armenian Cemetery in the
Zeytinburnu district of Ä°stanbul on Sunday to mark the eighth
anniversary of Dink’s death. Carnations were laid on Dink’s grave.

Another ceremony was also held in Çanakkale province on Sunday by a
group called Hrant’s Friends, which includes lawmakers and activists.
The group laid carnations in front of pictures of Dink.

A large commemoration ceremony will be held in front of the Agos
headquarters, where Dink was shot, on Monday.

CHP deputy chairman: AK Party responsible for Dink murder

Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Sezgin
Tanrıkulu was among those who attended the commemoration ceremony held
at Dink’s grave. Speaking with the press following the ceremony,
Tanrıkulu recalled that Dink’s murder took place during Justice and
Development Party (AK Party) rule, claiming that officials responsible
for or guilty of negligence regarding the murder were promoted by the
government.

`The government is now trying to transfer its responsibility on an
issue in which it had direct responsibility to someone else,’
Tanrıkulu said in reference to the government’s recent efforts to
associate the Dink assassination with the faith-based Hizmet movement,
which is inspired by the teachings of prominent Turkish Islamic
scholar Fethullah Gülen. Tanrıkulu also claimed that the investigation
into the Dink murder `will not go beyond the arrest of three to five
hit men.’

Dink was shot and killed by an ultra-nationalist teenager. The hit
man, Ogün Samast, and 18 others were brought to trial. Since then, the
lawyers for the Dink family and the co-plaintiffs in the case have
presented evidence indicating that Samast did not act alone. Another
suspect, Yasin Hayal, was given life in prison for inciting Samast to
murder.

Stating that the AK Party government has been protecting the
perpetrators of the Dink murder, Tanrıkulu also claimed: `There is no
longer a cloak of secrecy on the Hrant Dink murder. The real faces of
the AK Party and those who have a hand in the assassination have been
revealed clearly. Nowadays, the AK Party government, which tries to
associate the murder with a certain segment of society, is mocking
Dink’s family and his relatives and friends.’

Speaking with Today’s Zaman, Turkish-Armenian journalist Hayko BaÄ?dat
said the Dink murder has still not been solved completely even though
eight years have passed since his death. BaÄ?dat says the reason the
murder has not been solved in eight years is because officials linked
with AK Party have a hand in the murder.

BaÄ?dat also said that all the bureaucrats that were responsible for
the Dink murder were exempted from the investigation into the
assassination, adding: `They were promoted and they have had the
opportunity clean all the evidence [that can prove their crime] within
this time.’ BaÄ?dat also claimed that the list of those who should be
investigated also includes ministers, police chiefs, governors and
officials in the National Intelligence Organization (MÄ°T).

Noting that President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an is trying to use the Dink
murder in his battle against the Hizmet movement, BaÄ?dat also said the
government has been trying to place blame on people close to the
movement.