Epress.am News from Armenia
The ‘Friends of Hrant’ group, formed to bring light into the murder trial of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, demanded Turkey’s government to withdraw its defense recently submitted to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), reports Bia News Centre. The group criticized the defense regarding the case opened by the Dink family at the Strasbourg court in a written statement.
“We feel ashamed” is the title of the groups statement that requests an apology to the Dink family and an investigation into the preparation and approval of the defense. The group demanded an explanation from the government and all state institutions that were involved in the defense.
The Dink family had applied to the ECHR because of Dink’s conviction based on the controversial Article 301 of the Turkish Criminal Code which bans “insults” to the Turkish state. The Turkish government recently submitted its defense to the international court, accusing Dink of having written “hate speeches” and comparing him with a Nazi leader.