Death of Journalist Brings Attention to Problems Between Armenia and Turkey
By Amanda S. Coleman
Hrant Dink, an Armenian-Turkish journalist was shot and killed on January 19 in front of his newspaper’s offices in Turkey. A murder is never a cause for celebration, but there is one benefit to this horrible event: a tentative reconciliation of the Turks and Armenians which, with a lot of effort, could greatly improve the relationship between the two countries. For these two groups, who rarely agree on anything, the tragedy has allowed them to move beyond past grievances.
Hrant Dink was an outspoken critic of Turkey’s human rights record and their poor efforts to reform. He was the editor of “Agos,” a bilingual Turkish and Armenian newspaper, and was widely known for his writings on the massacres of Armenians in southern Anatolia at the end of the Ottoman Empire. This topic remains an extremely sensitive debate, as the Turks refuse to acknowledge the killings of over one million Armenians as “genocide.” Dink faced prosecution for his writings, and was found guilty of “insulting Turkishness” under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. In July 2006, he was sentenced to six months in prison because of an article he wrote about the 1915 massacres of Armenians in Anatolia. Although this sentence was later suspended, he had other charges still pending when he was murdered. Many blame the controversial Article 301 for Dink’s death, and are eager to eliminate the law so that freedom of speech can be fully implemented in Turkey.
The main suspect of the murder is Ogun Samast, a young nationalist, who “was driven to commit the crime by his nationalist feelings,” according to a New York Times report.
Turkey is guilty of prosecuting and convicting individuals who attempt to exercise their right to freedom of expression. Article 301, the “insulting of Turkishness,” can be interpreted in various ways that lead to the suppression of legitimate free speech. In 2006, over 50 people were charged with making statements or speeches that questioned state policy on controversial topics such as ethnicity, religion and the role of the army. The intolerance of free speech has created an environment of hostility and violence in Turkey, which helped lead to Dink’s murder.
The Human Rights Watch has called upon the Turkish government to hold an investigation of Dink’s murder and to indict those who are found responsible. Human Rights Watch also requests that the government repeal Article 301 and that they drop all charges against journalists who, like Dink, were prosecuted for attempting to exercise their freedom of speech. Bulent Arinc, the parliamentary chairman from the ruling Justice and Development Party, said he would support efforts to abolish Article 301, and he thinks that many members of Parliament would be in favor of this as well.
The relationship between Armenia and Turkey has been anything but friendly: the border has been sealed since 1993. Dink’s death was a starting point in paving the way for better relations between the two countries. Armenia sent a deputy foreign minister, Arman Kirakossian, to the funeral, and the archbishop of the Armenia Church of America, Khajag Barsamian, also attended. Many Turkish government officials attended the funeral as well.
This tragic event will hopefully be helpful in strengthening the stability of both countries and improving communication between them. “Public opinion in both countries, weary of the years-long conflict, had reached a point of explosion,” said Kaan Soyak, a director of the Turkish-Armenian Business Development Commission. “That’s what lies behind the massive outpouring for Mr. Dink.”
The funeral on January 23 was truly a powerful event. Hundreds of
pigeons were released as a sign of peace. It was a symbolic gesture;
as Dink once said, “I may see myself as frightened as a pigeon, but
I know that in this country people do not touch pigeons.” Red carnations
were passed out, and many held black and white posters that said, “We
are all Hrant Dirk” in Turkish on one side, and in Armenian on the other.
Other posters called for the abolishment of Article 301. Perhaps the
displays of grief on both sides will lead the Turks and Armenians to
look at one another in a new and more forgiving light.
Sources:
"Turkey: Outspoken Turkish-Armenian Journalist Murdered." Human Rights News. 20 Jan. 2007. 28 Jan. 2007 <http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/01/20/turkey15135.htm>.
Fowler, Susanne, and Sebnem Arsu. "Thousands Mourn Slain Editor in Istanbul." The New York Times 23 Jan. 2007. 29 Jan. 2007 <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/23/world/europe/23cnd-turkey.html?ex=1170478800&en=16139425116715e4&ei=5070>.
Arsu, Sebnem, and Suzanne Fowler. "Armenian Editor’s Death Leads
to Conciliation." The New York Times 23 Jan. 2007. 29 Jan. 2007
<http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40912F834540C708EDDA80894DF404482>.
