Epress.am News from Armenia
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has already stated its ruling in the case of Armenian-Turkish weekly Agos former editor Hrant Dink. The court charged the Republic of Turkey with not ensuring the safety of Dink’s life and prohibiting freedom of opinion, writes Agos. The ruling will be officially published on September 4, a day before Hrant Dink’s birthday.
Agos also recalls that prior to the ECHR ruling, Turkey’s government attempted to initiate means to prevent the final verdict. On August 23, a session headed by the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmet Davutoglu convened during which time a decision was made to offer a “friendly settlement” to Dink’s family.
Such a decision wasn’t made during the previous weeks when the European court’s ruling wasn’t clear. In this regard, Dink’s family’s attorneys stated that “after the ruling’s dismissal, the ‘friendly settlement’ version no longer holds any meaning.”
Attorney Arzu Becerik, speaking with Agos, said that during the entire Hrant Dink trial their requests were continuously rejected, and besides that, the “friendly settlement” version seems seriously suspicious. According to Becerik, another reason to doubt the government’s honesty is Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan prohibiting to begin an investigation to determine whether the National Security Service had any connection with Dink’s murder.