By Andranik Ispiryan
Six years have passed since the assassination of Hrant Dink, the former editor of the Armenian Agos newspaper, in Istanbul on January 19. He was one of the most famous Armenians in Turkey. He always remained calm despite multiple threats voiced against him.
Speaking on a number of democratic platforms and social organizations, Dink always stressed the need for the democratization of Turkey. He spoke about freedom of speech, human rights and rights of Turkey’s national minorities. He believed that the Armenian community will be able to stay free in Turkey and it will not be pressured on history issue.
Hrant Dink was killed on January 19, 2007 in Istanbul, in front of the office of Agos newspaper. Prior to the murder, in his publications Dink reported that threats against him were becoming more frequent. In addition, he complained that police refused to protect him from possible attack.
To disclose Dink’s murder, a number of international organizations repeatedly called on the Turkish government to ensure an impartial investigation. The European Court of Human Rights in September 2010 found Turkey guilty of failing to protect Hrant Dink, despite the fact that during the investigation it became clear that gendarmerie and police knew about the impending assassination attempt.
The trial on Dink’s case had a shameful end. The masterminds of the assassination have not been disclosed, while certain facts and evidence presented in court have not been studied.
On 17 January, 2011, the court set free one of the main suspects in the murder Erhan Tuncel. Ogun Samast was sentenced to 22 years and 10 months in jail, while Yasin Hayal charged with incitement to murder was sentenced to life imprisonment.
One of the ridiculous elements of “the court show” was that the day after a verdict was delivered it was revealed that the court forgot to make a judgment on one of the defendants.
In Turkey the judgment was not welcomed. After the verdict was announced, thousands of people gathered outside the court building, started protesting against an unfair sentence and moved to the Agos office.
Turkish Culture Minister labeled the verdict as a dangerous phenomenon. President Abdullah Gul said that he sees social discontent, and the Minister of Justice tried to calm the public, noting that the trial is not over yet and the verdict can be appealed. The leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party of Turkey, Kemal Kilicdaroglu criticized the verdict, saying this is the justice of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
However, the most ridiculous thing about the trial is that president of the court, who made an infamous judgment on Dink’s case, stated he was not pleased with the decision.
A year has passed since the verdict was announced. The appeal process is moving slowly.
The military, police officers, government officials, judges and prosecutors, having links to assassination and preventing disclosure of the murder, were promoted.
On the sixth anniversary of assassination a number of organizations initiated protests and events to pay tribute to Hrant Dink.
