Hrant Dink Award Ceremony: Rakel Dink's Speech

* Photograph: Hrant Dink Foundation

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Dear Friends, and Distinguished Guests

Harkeli Hürer, Sireli Paregamner

Heval û hogirên me, hûn hemû bi xêr hatin!

Today is the 64th birthday of my 'Chutag'. I would like to welcome you all to the decennial ceremony of the award we named after him in order to celebrate his life and struggle, as well as similar struggles by others.

Dear Friends,

For a long time now, I've felt like I've been in a bad dream that I want to wake up from. I wish everything that happened on January 19th, 2007 and afterwards were only a horrible dream. The level of tension and uncertainty in our country is mind-blowing. We are consumed with resentment, perplexity, sadness and numbness. No one is able to grasp how we ended up like this.

To quote the Holy Bible, I want to wake up to a land where there are no feet quick to rush into evil, no false witnesses who pour out lies . I want to wake up to a world, to a Turkey where no one is fomenting strife among peoples.

I want to wake up from this bad dream. I want to wake up to a day in my country that witnesses the "Saturday Mothers" receiving an apology, the whereabouts of all missing persons being disclosed, and thousands gathered at Galatasaray square laying carnations only to commemorate them. I want to wake up to a state government where everything is transparent and open, never to sink to this level again.

Many of our friends and loved ones who would love more than anything to be with us today, are either abroad or in jail. At the same time, the perpetrators of the 80s and 90s are trying to secure a place for themselves in this new order. I want to wake up to a day where people are not afraid of expressing or hearing different opinions, where hopes for democracy, peace, and coming to terms with our recent and distant past flourish once again. I want to wake up to a day where there is no injustice, no humiliation, no contemptuous eyes, no hands shedding innocent blood, no lying tongues, and no wicked hearts.

I want to wake up from my sleep. I want to wake up to a Turkey where justice is in place, where no murders, abuses or sexual assaults take place. I want to wake up to a Turkey that cries out out, ''Never again!''

Despite all the threats he received, Hrant remained full of hope; so much so that he found it outrageous even to consider abandoning his friends and country in the struggle for democracy and moving to the paradise of ready-made freedoms. The most vital part of his legacy to us today, is to believe in this society. To believe that this society, and all humanity, can do far better.

I wish we could understand that the only way out of this nightmare is to live together. I wish the genuine and common goals of states were not to kill people, but to keep them alive. I wish everyone could live their lives with the conviction that life is more precious than all else.

Dear Friends,

Tonight, once again, we will be introduced to some very distinguished individuals. People who are courageous, determined, who never give up in their demand for justice and freedom despite the risks; who will inspire us and the rest of the world to ''carry on!'' with hope. We salute all the laureates of these awards, who we admire for their unwavering persistence, all who shine in their inspiration, and all those people in all corners of the world who continue to struggle to this end. (EKN/SD)

CLICK - Hrant Dink Award Granted to Murat Çelikkan, Mwatana for Human Rights

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CLICK - Hrant Dink Award Ceremony: Murat Çelikkan's Speech