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Sunday's Zaman, Turkey
Jan 22 2012
Indeed, this case is not over yet
JOOST LAGENDIJK
I was planning to write my column about something else, thinking that
on Sunday, the day this article is published and three days after the
Hrant Dink march I participated in on Thursday, more or less
everything would have been said about this amazing event.
Maybe that is true, but I have to write about it anyway because it was
such a powerful event, both sad and impressive, and because I am
convinced that, as one of the key slogans during the demonstration
highlighted, this case is not over yet.
Let me try to explain why the killing of Dink and the scandalous
execution and conclusion of the court case against his murderers have
become such iconic phenomena. If the true driving forces behind Dink's
murder remain hidden and protected, this case will keep haunting
Turkey and its leaders for years to come. Why?
Firstly, because of the person he was, and his ideals. Apart from the
rancorous Turkish nationalists, most people who saw him on television
or heard him speak appreciated his warm personality and respected his
positive agenda: trying to reconcile Turks and Armenians. Dink was not
a hard-liner but a conciliator. His murder shocked millions who did
not know him personally but realized, up until today, that doves don't
deserve to be killed.
The second reason for the doggedness of this case, at home and abroad,
is the subject that is directly linked to Dink and his work: the
debate on the Great Catastrophe that the Ottoman Armenians were
subjected to in 1915. That issue is not going to go away, on the
contrary. In the run-up to 2015, that debate will intensify and, with
each round, Dink's fate will loom large in the background.
Thirdly, this crime is easy to understand. We are not talking about
complicated conspiracies like Ergenekon here. A few nationalist
youngsters from Trabzon were told to kill Dink, someone they did not
know personally. Everybody understands that these young guys did not
plan the murder, let alone should be held responsible for the cover-up
before and after. There were others, in the security apparatus of the
state, who orchestrated this crime and used their contacts in the
state hierarchy to get away with it. As long as these links are not
uncovered, nobody will believe that justice has been served.
Fourth, the ruling of the court touches upon at least one hot issue
that will be on the top of Turkey's political agenda for the next
couple of years: the need to fundamentally reform the legal system.
Many deficiencies have already been discussed and the government has
announced reforms to tackle them. But how to convince anyone that
things are improving when it is still possible in Turkey for a judge
to rule that there was no conspiracy behind Hrant's murder while the
prosecutor and one of the main suspects have declared otherwise. Even
the judge himself claimed in an interview afterwards that deep down he
believes himself that there is something rotten out there.
Finally, there is the power of the picture. Each time there is a
massive demonstration linked to Dink's murder or court case, the
familiar images of thousands of people holding famous slogans on small
black-and-white cardboard placards make it to the front pages in
Turkey and abroad. You do not need to follow the news on a daily basis
to immediately realize that this is still about this case of the
murdered Turkish journalist. Millions have stored these images in
their memory and these will only gradually fade away when there is no
longer a need to go out and express the anger and frustration of so
many in a way that has become so well understood and recognized all
over the world.
For all those reasons, there is nowhere the Justice and Development
Party (AKP) government can hide. After having been in power for almost
10 years now, they are responsible for a breakthrough of the present
stalemate. If they choose to remain undecided on this matter, there
are only two credible explanations: The ruling party is not willing to
do so because it has opted for a deal with the status quo forces in
the state or is not able to push for a satisfying solution because it
still can't touch some of the old power centers. Either way, the AKP
will come out morally damaged and politically weakened. I am sure this
is not a scenario the AKP leadership prefers.
Indeed, this case is not over yet.
Jan 22 2012
Indeed, this case is not over yet
JOOST LAGENDIJK
I was planning to write my column about something else, thinking that
on Sunday, the day this article is published and three days after the
Hrant Dink march I participated in on Thursday, more or less
everything would have been said about this amazing event.
Maybe that is true, but I have to write about it anyway because it was
such a powerful event, both sad and impressive, and because I am
convinced that, as one of the key slogans during the demonstration
highlighted, this case is not over yet.
Let me try to explain why the killing of Dink and the scandalous
execution and conclusion of the court case against his murderers have
become such iconic phenomena. If the true driving forces behind Dink's
murder remain hidden and protected, this case will keep haunting
Turkey and its leaders for years to come. Why?
Firstly, because of the person he was, and his ideals. Apart from the
rancorous Turkish nationalists, most people who saw him on television
or heard him speak appreciated his warm personality and respected his
positive agenda: trying to reconcile Turks and Armenians. Dink was not
a hard-liner but a conciliator. His murder shocked millions who did
not know him personally but realized, up until today, that doves don't
deserve to be killed.
The second reason for the doggedness of this case, at home and abroad,
is the subject that is directly linked to Dink and his work: the
debate on the Great Catastrophe that the Ottoman Armenians were
subjected to in 1915. That issue is not going to go away, on the
contrary. In the run-up to 2015, that debate will intensify and, with
each round, Dink's fate will loom large in the background.
Thirdly, this crime is easy to understand. We are not talking about
complicated conspiracies like Ergenekon here. A few nationalist
youngsters from Trabzon were told to kill Dink, someone they did not
know personally. Everybody understands that these young guys did not
plan the murder, let alone should be held responsible for the cover-up
before and after. There were others, in the security apparatus of the
state, who orchestrated this crime and used their contacts in the
state hierarchy to get away with it. As long as these links are not
uncovered, nobody will believe that justice has been served.
Fourth, the ruling of the court touches upon at least one hot issue
that will be on the top of Turkey's political agenda for the next
couple of years: the need to fundamentally reform the legal system.
Many deficiencies have already been discussed and the government has
announced reforms to tackle them. But how to convince anyone that
things are improving when it is still possible in Turkey for a judge
to rule that there was no conspiracy behind Hrant's murder while the
prosecutor and one of the main suspects have declared otherwise. Even
the judge himself claimed in an interview afterwards that deep down he
believes himself that there is something rotten out there.
Finally, there is the power of the picture. Each time there is a
massive demonstration linked to Dink's murder or court case, the
familiar images of thousands of people holding famous slogans on small
black-and-white cardboard placards make it to the front pages in
Turkey and abroad. You do not need to follow the news on a daily basis
to immediately realize that this is still about this case of the
murdered Turkish journalist. Millions have stored these images in
their memory and these will only gradually fade away when there is no
longer a need to go out and express the anger and frustration of so
many in a way that has become so well understood and recognized all
over the world.
For all those reasons, there is nowhere the Justice and Development
Party (AKP) government can hide. After having been in power for almost
10 years now, they are responsible for a breakthrough of the present
stalemate. If they choose to remain undecided on this matter, there
are only two credible explanations: The ruling party is not willing to
do so because it has opted for a deal with the status quo forces in
the state or is not able to push for a satisfying solution because it
still can't touch some of the old power centers. Either way, the AKP
will come out morally damaged and politically weakened. I am sure this
is not a scenario the AKP leadership prefers.
Indeed, this case is not over yet.