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NON-CONFIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS TURNED INTO STATE SECRET IN DINK TRIAL
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Nov 11 2013
11 November 2013 /TODAY'S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL
The İstanbul 2nd Juvenile High Criminal Court, which oversaw the
case of Hrank Dink, who was killed by an ultranationalist teenager in
January 2007, demanded non-confidential documents concerning Dink's
murder belonging to the National Intelligence Organization (MİT)
that were sent to a parliamentary coup commission in addition to
non-confidential Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) recordings
of telephone conversations around the scene of the murder from the
İstanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office; however, when these documents
were sent to the court, the court asked MİT and the prosecutor's
office whether the information in the documents was a state secret,
a story in the Radikal daily reported on Monday.
According to a lawyer for the Dink family, this is an effort to turn
non-confidential documents into state secrets, which will block the
shedding of a bright light on the murder.
Dink, the late editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, was
shot dead on Jan. 19, 2007, by ultranationalist teenager Ogun Samast
outside the offices of his newspaper in İstanbul in broad daylight.
Hitman Samast was tried in a juvenile court because he was a minor
at the time of the crime and sentenced to nearly 23 years in prison.
According to Radikal's story, the İstanbul 2nd Juvenile High
Criminal Court demanded the non-confidential documents concerning
Dink's murder from the parliamentary coup commission and İstanbul
Chief Prosecutor's Office at the hearing dated Jan. 31, 2013.
The documents, which fit on 10 CDs, were sent to the court but this
time the court asked the same institutions whether the documents were
in the category of state secrets at the hearing dated July 12.
While Parliament said on Aug. 27 that "it says 'very confidential'
on the documents but there is no information suggesting that they
are state secrets," the prosecutor's office told the court that a
decision had been made for only limited access to the documents.
Despite this, the court again asked Parliament and the prosecutor's
office whether it should give copies of the documents to the parties
involved in the trial at the hearing on Nov. 5. It also asked MİT
whether the documents it sent to the coup commission include state
secrets.
According to lawyer Hakan Bakırcıoglu, there is an effort to label
the non-confidential documents as state secrets. The lawyer said the
issue of state secrets is frequently seen in such trials, adding that
in order to cast a light on Dink's murder, all kinds of information
need to be accessible.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-331167-non-confidential-documents-turned-into-state-secret-in-dink-trial.html
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Nov 11 2013
11 November 2013 /TODAY'S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL
The İstanbul 2nd Juvenile High Criminal Court, which oversaw the
case of Hrank Dink, who was killed by an ultranationalist teenager in
January 2007, demanded non-confidential documents concerning Dink's
murder belonging to the National Intelligence Organization (MİT)
that were sent to a parliamentary coup commission in addition to
non-confidential Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) recordings
of telephone conversations around the scene of the murder from the
İstanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office; however, when these documents
were sent to the court, the court asked MİT and the prosecutor's
office whether the information in the documents was a state secret,
a story in the Radikal daily reported on Monday.
According to a lawyer for the Dink family, this is an effort to turn
non-confidential documents into state secrets, which will block the
shedding of a bright light on the murder.
Dink, the late editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, was
shot dead on Jan. 19, 2007, by ultranationalist teenager Ogun Samast
outside the offices of his newspaper in İstanbul in broad daylight.
Hitman Samast was tried in a juvenile court because he was a minor
at the time of the crime and sentenced to nearly 23 years in prison.
According to Radikal's story, the İstanbul 2nd Juvenile High
Criminal Court demanded the non-confidential documents concerning
Dink's murder from the parliamentary coup commission and İstanbul
Chief Prosecutor's Office at the hearing dated Jan. 31, 2013.
The documents, which fit on 10 CDs, were sent to the court but this
time the court asked the same institutions whether the documents were
in the category of state secrets at the hearing dated July 12.
While Parliament said on Aug. 27 that "it says 'very confidential'
on the documents but there is no information suggesting that they
are state secrets," the prosecutor's office told the court that a
decision had been made for only limited access to the documents.
Despite this, the court again asked Parliament and the prosecutor's
office whether it should give copies of the documents to the parties
involved in the trial at the hearing on Nov. 5. It also asked MİT
whether the documents it sent to the coup commission include state
secrets.
According to lawyer Hakan Bakırcıoglu, there is an effort to label
the non-confidential documents as state secrets. The lawyer said the
issue of state secrets is frequently seen in such trials, adding that
in order to cast a light on Dink's murder, all kinds of information
need to be accessible.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-331167-non-confidential-documents-turned-into-state-secret-in-dink-trial.html