The law has been used to indict writers and intellectuals, including Dink himself and novelist Orhan Pamuk, for commenting on the mass killings of Armenians by Turks around World War I. Turkey denies claims by Armenians and others that the killings amounted to genocide.
The cases against Pamuk and Dink have raised concerns about freedom of speech in the European Union, which Turkey aspires to join.
Three other writers from the "Agos" newspaper, including Dink's son, also went on trial today.
(AP)
Examining History
CALL IT GENOCIDE? Questions surrounding the mass killings of Armenians at the beginning of the last century continue to dominate relations between Armenia and Turkey. In April,
Ankara proposed conducting a joint Armenian-Turkish investigation into the mass killings and deportations of Armenians during World War I.
Turkish leaders suggested that the two countries set up a joint commission of historians to determine whether the massacres carried out between 1915 and 1917 constituted genocide. Armenia, however, insisted it would continue to seek international recognition and condemnation of what it says was a deliberate attempt at exterminating an entire people....(more)
See also:
Armenians Mark 90th Anniversary Of Start Of Massacres
Armenia: Tragedy Remains On Europe’s Political Map
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