Summary of the 11th Hearing

The 11th hearing of the murder trial dealing with the assassination of journalist and human rights activist Hrant Dink took place at the Beşiktaş 14th High Criminal Court in Istanbul in the beginning of this week on 12 October.

The wife of the former Armenian Agos newspaper editor Rakel Dink attended the hearing together with her daughter Delal Dink and her son Orhan Dink.

Secret witness did not appear

Dink family lawyer Fethiye Çetin criticized that the secret witness did not attend the hearing, "We requested a hearing including all defendants and the secret witness. But the court did not consider this aspect when they took the decision. It needs political power to conceal the organized forces behind this murder".

Together with the secret witness detained defendants Ogün Samast, Erhan Tuncel, Yasin Hayal, Ersin Yolcu and Ahmet İskender were supposed to attend the hearing.

Petition from the Dink family

Hrant Dink's wife Rakel, her children Arat, Delal and Sera and Dink's brother Hosrof Dink presented a petition to the court before the hearing, stating that the prosecutors do not pursue the revelation of the truth.

The petition emphasized that there is a strong desire to conceal the truth, that public institutions did not give serious answers to the court, that security and intelligence organizations are involved into the murder and that the trial is focusing on the triggerman only.

In fact, the criminal complaints filed against police and gendarmerie officials entered an order of nolle prosequi.

The request of hearing a number of officials as witnesses was rejected, among them former Istanbul Chief of Police Celattin Cerrah, Istanbul Intelligence Branch Director Ahmet İlhan Güler, Intelligence Department Chief Ramazan Akyürek, Trabzon Chief of Police Reşat Altay and Trabzon Gendarmerie Regiment Commander Colonel Ali Öz.

Murder weapon brought to court

The weapon Hrant Dink was shot with had been acquired for the 11th hearing. Triggerman suspect Ogün Samast stated that he could not remember the weapon because defendant Yasin Hayal allegedly prepared the gun and fastened it at his waist in a barber shop.

The joint attorneys of the Dink family requested to show the gun to the defendants individually, so President Judge Erkan Canak asked the defendants individually to describe the murder weapon.

Defendant Yasin Hayal, who had fastened the weapon at Samast's waist 2 or 3 days prior to the murder, was the only person who stated to remember the gun very clearly, "I remember, it was black. It was a hand-made gun with a magazine for 8+1bullets. I bought the bullets from the deceased Ömer Polat. It was all in the bag". Hayal also said that Samast had fired a couple of shots 2 or 3 days prior to the murder.

Defendant Ahmet İskender stated, "It was a black gun. I saw it when Hayal gave the weapon to Samast, but they did not see me". When the court president asked him if he did not intervene he replied, "I don't mind other people's business. Many people have a gun".

Trial followed up internationally

The 11^th hearing was followed by European Union - Turkey Joint Parliamentary Commission co-chair Hélene Flautre and European Parliament Greens Advisor Ali Yurttagül.

Representatives of the Paris Bar Association and the Brussels Bar Association lawyers Vincent Niore, Mathier Brochier and Alexandre Couyoumdjian, who already monitored the case during the previous 2 hearings, attended the latest hearing as well. The delegation prolonged their duty for another 2 years until the year 2011.

International Writers Association PEN board member Eugene Schoulgin and Lin Stensrud and Trine Kleven from PEN Norway also followed the hearing along with Democratic Society Party (DTP) MP Sebahat Tuncel, Parliamentary Human Rights Investigation Commission Chairman Zafer Üskül, and lawyers Seygin Tanrıkulu, Ali Koç and Filiz Kerestecioğlu.

The trial is to be continued on 8 February 2010. (EÖ/TK/VK)