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TRUTH IS PERSISTENT: HRANT DINK CASE
Today's Zaman
Jan 10 2012
Turkey
Why can't we solve the Hrant Dink murder? I have tried to answer
this question in this column many different times, approaching it
from many different angles.
My answers have one simple common denominator and it is this: We
cannot solve it because the whole system was involved in it.
Let me explain it in plain English. Dink's murder was planned and
orchestrated by circles within Ergenekon. Everything was planned in
advance. Dink once said that the Armenians would be free once they
had gotten rid of "the poisonous blood associated with Turks." What he
meant was very obvious. The Armenians, according to Dink, were poisoned
with the hatred of Turks and once they had managed to overcome this
hatred, a healing process would have been started.
One lawyer, Kemal Kerincsiz, who is now behind bars in connection
to being a member of Ergenekon, brought a case against Dink for the
above mentioned words, alleging that he was insulting "Turkishness."
Normally, any judge could have easily come to the conclusion that
Hrant's words were not about "Turkishness," but were an invitation for
Armenians to look at their hatred towards Turks from different angles.
However, the Turkish courts, as they were instructed to do,
"misunderstood" these words and took them literally as if they were
suggesting that Turkish blood was poisonous.
When Dink was put on trial for insulting "Turkishness," he became an
open target. While he was being tried before the courts, circles within
Ergenekon were not only pressuring the courts to give him a prison
sentence, but were also preparing murderers in Trabzon. Yasin Hayal,
who has very strong ties with the gendarmerie, was trying to convince
Ogun Samast to kill Dink. While he was doing this, they also talked
to Erhan Tuncel, who informed police intelligence of every single
step that Hayal and Samast were taking. Basically, everyone knew
that Dink was going to be killed. Since both intelligence services
were involved in this murder we have not been able to take any steps
forward since the beginning of the case.
As I was writing this article, the İstanbul Court was holding its
24th hearing in the Dink case. I kept one eye on my twitter page to see
the messages being sent by journalists at the courtroom. Two important
developments happened in this hearing. The first one was the lawyers'
analysis of the data on the records kept by the Telecommunications
Directorate (TİB). After 1 million requests the TİB provided its
records showing who was talking on mobile phones in the vicinity of
the spot where Dink was killed. Dink's lawyers stated in this last
hearing that the two accused had talked to five people in the area
before, during and after the murder. This is quite important, and if
the lawyers have not made a technical mistake, this will prove beyond
reasonable doubt that the murderer was not alone when he killed Dink.
This would of course open up a new dimension to the case.
The other important development is this: Hayal claimed that "the state"
is now trying to kill him in prison. He said he was used by the state
and if he is killed, everyone should understand that he was killed
by it. He also stated that Tuncel had used and manipulated him.
His remarks may be the beginning of an honest confession or he may
be trying to send a threatening message to "his masters" to save him,
hinting that if they don't, he will tell the whole truth.
While all this was happening, Hrant's friends were reading out a
press release outside the court room. I highlighted some statements
in this press release:
"You have neared the end of five years. You, not us. For five years you
hid the real killers; those who set up a treacherous ambush to take him
away from us, those who set up the bloody pathway leading to murder
under the shield of the state. For five years you have spoiled the
evidence; you hid the evidence that would unveil the real murderers
-- you concealed them. For five years you brought a few triggermen
before us and asked us to suffice with this. For five years you have
been adamantly doing this with a cold, insidious tenacity.
The tens of thousands marching after him, the millions crying after him
did not touch you one bit. Your cold hearts didn't bleed. The state of
law is far from you. That is why you preferred to show us the law of
the state instead. And this we have seen. ... This is almost the end
of five years and the 24th hearing ... you are still concealing the
real killers. But now that we, us Hrants, are very patient and very
determined, neither five, nor 95 years will deter us from demanding
from you -- those who protect them -- the real killers."
I really hope that we will see some concrete developments in this
case soon.
From: Baghdasarian
Today's Zaman
Jan 10 2012
Turkey
Why can't we solve the Hrant Dink murder? I have tried to answer
this question in this column many different times, approaching it
from many different angles.
My answers have one simple common denominator and it is this: We
cannot solve it because the whole system was involved in it.
Let me explain it in plain English. Dink's murder was planned and
orchestrated by circles within Ergenekon. Everything was planned in
advance. Dink once said that the Armenians would be free once they
had gotten rid of "the poisonous blood associated with Turks." What he
meant was very obvious. The Armenians, according to Dink, were poisoned
with the hatred of Turks and once they had managed to overcome this
hatred, a healing process would have been started.
One lawyer, Kemal Kerincsiz, who is now behind bars in connection
to being a member of Ergenekon, brought a case against Dink for the
above mentioned words, alleging that he was insulting "Turkishness."
Normally, any judge could have easily come to the conclusion that
Hrant's words were not about "Turkishness," but were an invitation for
Armenians to look at their hatred towards Turks from different angles.
However, the Turkish courts, as they were instructed to do,
"misunderstood" these words and took them literally as if they were
suggesting that Turkish blood was poisonous.
When Dink was put on trial for insulting "Turkishness," he became an
open target. While he was being tried before the courts, circles within
Ergenekon were not only pressuring the courts to give him a prison
sentence, but were also preparing murderers in Trabzon. Yasin Hayal,
who has very strong ties with the gendarmerie, was trying to convince
Ogun Samast to kill Dink. While he was doing this, they also talked
to Erhan Tuncel, who informed police intelligence of every single
step that Hayal and Samast were taking. Basically, everyone knew
that Dink was going to be killed. Since both intelligence services
were involved in this murder we have not been able to take any steps
forward since the beginning of the case.
As I was writing this article, the İstanbul Court was holding its
24th hearing in the Dink case. I kept one eye on my twitter page to see
the messages being sent by journalists at the courtroom. Two important
developments happened in this hearing. The first one was the lawyers'
analysis of the data on the records kept by the Telecommunications
Directorate (TİB). After 1 million requests the TİB provided its
records showing who was talking on mobile phones in the vicinity of
the spot where Dink was killed. Dink's lawyers stated in this last
hearing that the two accused had talked to five people in the area
before, during and after the murder. This is quite important, and if
the lawyers have not made a technical mistake, this will prove beyond
reasonable doubt that the murderer was not alone when he killed Dink.
This would of course open up a new dimension to the case.
The other important development is this: Hayal claimed that "the state"
is now trying to kill him in prison. He said he was used by the state
and if he is killed, everyone should understand that he was killed
by it. He also stated that Tuncel had used and manipulated him.
His remarks may be the beginning of an honest confession or he may
be trying to send a threatening message to "his masters" to save him,
hinting that if they don't, he will tell the whole truth.
While all this was happening, Hrant's friends were reading out a
press release outside the court room. I highlighted some statements
in this press release:
"You have neared the end of five years. You, not us. For five years you
hid the real killers; those who set up a treacherous ambush to take him
away from us, those who set up the bloody pathway leading to murder
under the shield of the state. For five years you have spoiled the
evidence; you hid the evidence that would unveil the real murderers
-- you concealed them. For five years you brought a few triggermen
before us and asked us to suffice with this. For five years you have
been adamantly doing this with a cold, insidious tenacity.
The tens of thousands marching after him, the millions crying after him
did not touch you one bit. Your cold hearts didn't bleed. The state of
law is far from you. That is why you preferred to show us the law of
the state instead. And this we have seen. ... This is almost the end
of five years and the 24th hearing ... you are still concealing the
real killers. But now that we, us Hrants, are very patient and very
determined, neither five, nor 95 years will deter us from demanding
from you -- those who protect them -- the real killers."
I really hope that we will see some concrete developments in this
case soon.
From: Baghdasarian