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HRANT DINK - COMMEMORATED AROUND THE WORLD
Anna Grabolle
BÝA
http://www.hranticinadaleticin. com/en/events.php
Jan 21 2008
Turkey
>From Frankfurt, Germany to Budapest, Hungary and to Berlin, Cologne
and London hundreds across the globe joined the ten thousand people
in Istanbul in memory of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, in the first
year of his assassination.
The murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in Istanbul a
year ago has not been forgotten in Turkey. Indeed, as the trial of
the young murder suspects is going on, new evidence pointing to a
much more coordinated organisation of the murder emerges nearly weekly.
"For Hrant, for Justice"
Thus, the crowd of over ten thousand who gathered in front of the
office of Dink's Agos newspaper in Istanbul on Saturday, at the time
and on the spot of his murder a year ago, was not only mourning an
outspoken proponent of dialogue between Turkey and Armenia, but also
protesting against the lack of investigation of the real forces behind
the murder. There were other gatherings and protests in other major
cities in Turkey, too. The slogan was "For Hrant, for Justice."
Internationally, newspapers reported on the commemoration gathering.
The German Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung ran two articles on 21
January, one covering the gathering, and one on Hrant Dink's last
article, in which he described himself as a "restless pigeon",
looking in all directions for possible threats.
A spate of attacks by young nationalists The taz newspaper published
an article entitled "Silence for Hrant Dink", in which it reported on
the ten thousand mourners, as well as a concert held in Hrant Dink's
memory in Istanbul in the evening. The article quoted human rights
activist and writer Arundhati Roy, who was with Hrant Dink's widow
Rakel Dink during the commemoration, as saying that it was Hrant Dink's
death which had drawn international attention to the Armenian question.
The article was generally pessimistic about the state of affairs in
Turkey, citing a list of attacks on Christians: the murder of Italian
priest Andrea Santoro, who was killed by a 17-year old in Trabzon
in February 2006, an attack on another priest who was injured five
months later, then Hrant Dink's murder, then the gruesome murder
of three Christians working for the Zirve Publishers in April 2007,
an attack on a priest in Izmir in December 2007, and another attack
prevented in Antalya.
The newspaper quoted Orhan Cengiz, lawyer in the Malatya case, as
saying that the profile of the perpetrators is the same in each case:
they were all young, male members of youth groups of the Nationalist
Movement Party (MHP) or Great Union Party (BBP). Older associates were
also linked to these parties, and before the crimes were committed,
there were "dubious contacts to police or military circles." Cengiz
also pointed out that evidence was often withheld, meaning that the
"men behind the scene" could not be investigated either in the Malatya
or the Dink murder case.
The same issue of the taz also published an article on the flag which
school children made out of their own blood, citing this as another
example of the rise in Turkish nationalism.
Only "small fry" in court The German Die Welt newspaper conducted an
interview with Fethiye Cetin, lawyer of the Dink family, in Istanbul
before the anniversary and also summarised the murder, reactions
and the trial in a series of 28 pictures. The newspaper said that
only the "small fry" were in court, and that the real forces behind
the murder had not been touched. Cetin spoke of her conviction that
the Trabzon group of suspects must have had logistic support in
Istanbul. She interpreted Dink's murder as an attempt to put a stop
to the democratisation process in Turkey and predicted that the trial
would last for years.
Call for reform of Penal Code The British Times newspaper published
an open letter to the editor, in which the Article 19, English PEN
and Index on Censorship organisations call on Turkey to reform its
Penal Code. The letter predicts that the planned amendments of the
controversial Article 301, under which Hrant Dink himself was tried
and sentenced, would "prove inadequate."
Suspicion of "negligence, even collusion" The New York Times reported
on the commemoration gathering and said:
"Hrant 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."
The newspaper added that there was suspicion of "official negligence,
or even collusion" in the murder, and that the Dink family mistrusted
the ongoing investigation.
Commemorative events around the world The first anniversary of Hrant
Dink's murder was also marked with cultural and religious events
internationally.
On 18 January, a panel entitled "Freedom of Expression and Association
& Article 301 and the Murder of Hrant Dink" was held in Frankfurt. On
the same day, a requiem was performed for Hrant Dink in Washington
D.C., and historian Taner Akcam held a speech. Another requiem was
organised in California, preceded by wreath-laying in front of Armenian
memorial monuments.
The Visual Anthropology Club of the Central European University in
Budapest remembered Hrant Dink with a viewing of the film "Swallow's
Nest", in which Hrant Dink speaks about an Armenian orphanage in the
outskirts of Ýstanbul. The same film was also shown in Ottawa, Canada.
In Berlin, a vigil was held in front of the Turkish consulate,
while the Monument of Innocents in London was the site of another
commemorative event. There was another gathering in Cologne, and a
photo exhibition of Hrant Dink's life in Berlin.
These are just a few examples of the many events organised in memory
of Hrant Dink; there were more in Germany and Britain, as well as
Belgium, the Netherlands and France. (AG)
--Boundary_(ID_Vqw6wBAhu5uzhDjhapygfw)--
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Anna Grabolle
BÝA
http://www.hranticinadaleticin. com/en/events.php
Jan 21 2008
Turkey
>From Frankfurt, Germany to Budapest, Hungary and to Berlin, Cologne
and London hundreds across the globe joined the ten thousand people
in Istanbul in memory of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, in the first
year of his assassination.
The murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in Istanbul a
year ago has not been forgotten in Turkey. Indeed, as the trial of
the young murder suspects is going on, new evidence pointing to a
much more coordinated organisation of the murder emerges nearly weekly.
"For Hrant, for Justice"
Thus, the crowd of over ten thousand who gathered in front of the
office of Dink's Agos newspaper in Istanbul on Saturday, at the time
and on the spot of his murder a year ago, was not only mourning an
outspoken proponent of dialogue between Turkey and Armenia, but also
protesting against the lack of investigation of the real forces behind
the murder. There were other gatherings and protests in other major
cities in Turkey, too. The slogan was "For Hrant, for Justice."
Internationally, newspapers reported on the commemoration gathering.
The German Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung ran two articles on 21
January, one covering the gathering, and one on Hrant Dink's last
article, in which he described himself as a "restless pigeon",
looking in all directions for possible threats.
A spate of attacks by young nationalists The taz newspaper published
an article entitled "Silence for Hrant Dink", in which it reported on
the ten thousand mourners, as well as a concert held in Hrant Dink's
memory in Istanbul in the evening. The article quoted human rights
activist and writer Arundhati Roy, who was with Hrant Dink's widow
Rakel Dink during the commemoration, as saying that it was Hrant Dink's
death which had drawn international attention to the Armenian question.
The article was generally pessimistic about the state of affairs in
Turkey, citing a list of attacks on Christians: the murder of Italian
priest Andrea Santoro, who was killed by a 17-year old in Trabzon
in February 2006, an attack on another priest who was injured five
months later, then Hrant Dink's murder, then the gruesome murder
of three Christians working for the Zirve Publishers in April 2007,
an attack on a priest in Izmir in December 2007, and another attack
prevented in Antalya.
The newspaper quoted Orhan Cengiz, lawyer in the Malatya case, as
saying that the profile of the perpetrators is the same in each case:
they were all young, male members of youth groups of the Nationalist
Movement Party (MHP) or Great Union Party (BBP). Older associates were
also linked to these parties, and before the crimes were committed,
there were "dubious contacts to police or military circles." Cengiz
also pointed out that evidence was often withheld, meaning that the
"men behind the scene" could not be investigated either in the Malatya
or the Dink murder case.
The same issue of the taz also published an article on the flag which
school children made out of their own blood, citing this as another
example of the rise in Turkish nationalism.
Only "small fry" in court The German Die Welt newspaper conducted an
interview with Fethiye Cetin, lawyer of the Dink family, in Istanbul
before the anniversary and also summarised the murder, reactions
and the trial in a series of 28 pictures. The newspaper said that
only the "small fry" were in court, and that the real forces behind
the murder had not been touched. Cetin spoke of her conviction that
the Trabzon group of suspects must have had logistic support in
Istanbul. She interpreted Dink's murder as an attempt to put a stop
to the democratisation process in Turkey and predicted that the trial
would last for years.
Call for reform of Penal Code The British Times newspaper published
an open letter to the editor, in which the Article 19, English PEN
and Index on Censorship organisations call on Turkey to reform its
Penal Code. The letter predicts that the planned amendments of the
controversial Article 301, under which Hrant Dink himself was tried
and sentenced, would "prove inadequate."
Suspicion of "negligence, even collusion" The New York Times reported
on the commemoration gathering and said:
"Hrant 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."
The newspaper added that there was suspicion of "official negligence,
or even collusion" in the murder, and that the Dink family mistrusted
the ongoing investigation.
Commemorative events around the world The first anniversary of Hrant
Dink's murder was also marked with cultural and religious events
internationally.
On 18 January, a panel entitled "Freedom of Expression and Association
& Article 301 and the Murder of Hrant Dink" was held in Frankfurt. On
the same day, a requiem was performed for Hrant Dink in Washington
D.C., and historian Taner Akcam held a speech. Another requiem was
organised in California, preceded by wreath-laying in front of Armenian
memorial monuments.
The Visual Anthropology Club of the Central European University in
Budapest remembered Hrant Dink with a viewing of the film "Swallow's
Nest", in which Hrant Dink speaks about an Armenian orphanage in the
outskirts of Ýstanbul. The same film was also shown in Ottawa, Canada.
In Berlin, a vigil was held in front of the Turkish consulate,
while the Monument of Innocents in London was the site of another
commemorative event. There was another gathering in Cologne, and a
photo exhibition of Hrant Dink's life in Berlin.
These are just a few examples of the many events organised in memory
of Hrant Dink; there were more in Germany and Britain, as well as
Belgium, the Netherlands and France. (AG)
--Boundary_(ID_Vqw6wBAhu5uzhDjhapygfw)--
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress