Turkish writer on trial

Cyprus Observer, Cyprus
Aug 5, 2006

The Beyoglu prosecutor’s office in Istanbul yesterday formally opened
a lawsuit against novelist and Turkish Daily News columnist Elif
Safak on charges of "insulting Turkishness", after a court approved
the indictment. The opening of the case against Safak was announced
on the same day that an Istanbul court dropped a lawsuit against
novelist Orhan Pamuk. Safak will stand trial because of the words
uttered by fictional Armenian characters in her novel "Baba ve Pic"
(The Bastard of Istanbul). She is accused of belittling Turkishness in
her book. Both the Pamuk and Safak cases were initiated by nationalist
lawyer Kemal Kerincsiz.

Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS