‘Dark veil covering up Hrant Dink murder not lifted’

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The trial of public officials over the assassination of Agos Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Hrant Dink in 2007 ended today (March 26).

Dink Family's attorney Hakan Bakırcıoğlu, Hrant's Friend Bülent Aydın, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Representative to Turkey Erol Önderoğlu and Agos Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Yetvart Danzikyan made a press statement in front of the İstanbul Courthouse after the court handed down its ruling, acquitting 37 defendants and convicting 26 others.

CLICK - 37 acquittals, 26 convictions, 6 life sentences

'This verdict will be overturned as well'

Speaking first, attorney Hakan Bakırcıoğlu underlined the process leading up to the Hrant Dink murder was not effectively investigated:

"No indictment has been lodged against the ones who ran a lynch campaign against Hrant Dink. A significant part of the state officials who had responsibility for this murder, who participated in this murder have not been indicted. And it has not been concretely revealed who basically gave the decision of murder and through what processes this murder was committed.

"The ruling given in this case, with its boundaries and scope determined, is a ruling containing mistakes to a large extent.

"There was a ruling given by this court in 2012 as well and that ruling was overturned by the Court of Cassation in 2013. Today, this ruling which does not fully reveal the Hrant Dink murder, has ended in the acquittal of several people who had responsibility for the murder and does not give a ruling on the responsible parties will also be overturned. We will appeal against this ruling. We will push to the end so that the trial will be properly held.

Aydın: Dark veil not lifted

Speaking after attorney Bakırcıoğlu, Bülent Aydın, one of Hrant's Friends, made the following statement about the ruling:

"One more stage of the Hrant Dink murder case has ended. The ruling handed down by the court has once again shown that the murder and the structure behind it have not been fully revealed. We said over and over again that everyone had a role and involvement in this murder should appear before the judge and be given the sentences they deserve.

"We repeat: Those who said, 'Kill him' must be put on trial. This trial will continue until justice is served. Hrant Dink was killed in a racist murder. His trial has ended for now. The dark veil covering up this murder has not been lifted. For this reason, this trial will not end until we say so."

Danzikyan: Mechanism not revealed

Agos Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Yetvart Danzikyan also indicated that today's ruling "has come down in records as a deficient ruling." 

"We want the mechanism that killed Hrant to be revealed. The mechanism that killed Hrant Dink has not been fully disclosed with this ruling. Some of the responsible ones have never been brought before justice, while some of them have been acquitted," added Danzikyan.

Önderoğlu: Responsible ones protected

RSF Turkey Representative Erol Önderoğlu also said:

"Today's ruling has left a bitter taste in us. This is the third case after the hitmen and the members of the gang were penalized.

"It has been openly revealed that some actors, both behind and in front of the scene, have been protected, including the ones who played the role of instigators in the process leading up to the massacre of Hrant Dink and the ones who threatened him on the street and with statements.

"The Dink families' application to the ECtHR a year ago, as they could not have over 20 officials put on trial, confirms our findings."

Önderoğlu underlined that as long as all intrastate actors are revealed, it will remain as a common impression that the case was first used as a tool of revenge first against the Ergenekon, and now against the Gülen organization. He said, "Until justice is served for Dink, we, as the RSF, will continue to wage our struggle." (HA/SD)