The Canadian Press
Jan 19 2008
Turkey commemorates Armenian journalist’s slaying
ISTANBUL, Turkey – Thousands of people gathered Saturday to mark the
killing of a Turkish Armenian journalist one year ago, placing red
carnations on the spot where he was gunned down in daylight and
demanding justice in the case.
Wearing black and holding placards reading "For Hrant. For Justice,"
the protesters paid tribute to Hrant Dink, a Turkish citizen of
Armenian origins who angered many by calling the century-old killings
of Armenians a genocide. Turkey insists the killings resulted from
civil war and unrest in the last days of the First World War.
On Jan. 19, 2007, Dink was gunned down outside his office, allegedly
by a hardline nationalist teenager.
The killing brought international condemnation and sparked a debate
about freedom of speech in Turkey, where massive crowds took to the
streets, chanting: "We are all Armenians, we are all Hrants."
Saturday’s crowd repeated the same slogan, before standing for a
moment in silence in front of the Agos newspaper office, where Dink
had been chief editor. Holding placards written in Turkish, Armenian
and English, the mourners then attended a commemoration ceremony at
Agos, where a huge photograph of Dink covered part of the newspaper
building.
"We are here today because we want justice," his wife, Rakel Dink,
said in an address to the mourners, many of whom had pinned pictures
of the slain journalist to their chests.
She vowed to press further for justice, saying the judiciary had not
followed up on evidence suggesting officials may have been involved
in the plot to kill her husband.
Dink had sought to encourage reconciliation between Turkey and
Armenia, but several years before his death he was prosecuted under
Turkish law for describing the early 20th-century mass killings of
Armenians as genocide.
"Despite all the past grievances among Turks and Armenians, he never
expressed hatred," said Mevlut Yilmaz at the ceremony Saturday. "He
was thinking about the future, not the past."
Turkey’s top politicians, including the prime minister, have vowed a
thorough investigation. An Istanbul court is looking into allegations
of official negligence or even collusion, but lawyers for Dink’s
family have said the investigation is flawed.
The murder trial, which started last year, is taking place behind
closed doors because the alleged gunman is a minor. A total of 19
suspects are on trial, and the next hearing is scheduled for Feb. 11.
Dink was prosecuted for his Armenian genocide comments under an
article of Turkey’s penal code, which bans insults to Turkish
identity. Despite appeals by the European Union, the law remains
unchanged.