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ANCA calls for legal actions against NiĆ?anyan sentence
May 25, 2013 - 11:21 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - The ANCA asked the State Department to condemn the
Turkish government's legal actions against Sevan NiĆ?anyan, an Armenian
blogger who, having been pressured in the past over remarks on the
Armenian Genocide, was recently sentenced to a year in prison for
`blasphemy.'
`The ANCA noted its efforts, prior to Hrant Dink's assassination, to
encourage the U.S. to openly stand up against this courageous
journalist's persecution for speaking truthfully about the Armenian
Genocide. Tragically - the ANCA letter pointed out - the State
Department ignored these appeals and only spoke out openly on Hrant
Dink's case after he had been murdered,' ANCA executive Director Aram
Hamparian said.
NiĆ?anyan is one of the leading linguists of Turkey. He has penned
columns for the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos and daily Taraf.
In the blog entry that led to the prison sentence, NiĆ?anyan was in
fact calling for the combating of hate speech, urging at the same time
more tolerance.
However NiĆ?anyan was charged for blasphemy for the lines: "Making fun
of an Arab leader who claimed he contacted Allah hundreds of years ago
and received political, financial and sexual benefits is not hate
speech. It is an almost kindergarten-level test of what is called
freedom of expression."
May 25, 2013 - 11:21 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - The ANCA asked the State Department to condemn the
Turkish government's legal actions against Sevan NiĆ?anyan, an Armenian
blogger who, having been pressured in the past over remarks on the
Armenian Genocide, was recently sentenced to a year in prison for
`blasphemy.'
`The ANCA noted its efforts, prior to Hrant Dink's assassination, to
encourage the U.S. to openly stand up against this courageous
journalist's persecution for speaking truthfully about the Armenian
Genocide. Tragically - the ANCA letter pointed out - the State
Department ignored these appeals and only spoke out openly on Hrant
Dink's case after he had been murdered,' ANCA executive Director Aram
Hamparian said.
NiĆ?anyan is one of the leading linguists of Turkey. He has penned
columns for the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos and daily Taraf.
In the blog entry that led to the prison sentence, NiĆ?anyan was in
fact calling for the combating of hate speech, urging at the same time
more tolerance.
However NiĆ?anyan was charged for blasphemy for the lines: "Making fun
of an Arab leader who claimed he contacted Allah hundreds of years ago
and received political, financial and sexual benefits is not hate
speech. It is an almost kindergarten-level test of what is called
freedom of expression."