CONVICTED TURKISH DENIALIST BECOMES UNWITTING PUBLICIST FOR
GENOCIDE
15-03-2007 18:24:00 | USA | Articles and Analyses
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
A Swiss Court last week found Dogu Perincek, the leader of
the radical leftist Turkish Workers' Party, guilty of denying
the Armenian Genocide. Perincek is described by prominent
Turkish historian Halil Berktay as a "former Marxist, Maoist
turned ultra-nationalist, ultra statist, [and]
ultra-militarist."
Two years ago, he was detained and interrogated in
Switzerland after stating that the Armenian Genocide was "an
imperialist lie." He then dared the Swiss authorities to try him
on charges of denying a genocide that he claimed never occurred.
Perincek arrived in Switzerland last week with a planeload
of his fanatical supporters who describe themselves as members
of the "Talat Pasha Committee." He claimed that he had brought
with him 90 kilos (over 200 pounds) of "irrefutable" Russian and
Armenian documents that backed his denials of the Armenian
Genocide. In advance of the trial, he repeatedly expressed his
conviction that he would be able to prove in court, once and for
all, that the Armenian Genocide "was a lie," thus forcing the
Swiss to abolish the law banning the denial of the genocide.
Testifying on behalf of Perincek in court were four
notorious Turkophiles: Prof. Justin McCarthy from the United
States; Norman Stone, a British denialist who teaches in Turkey;
Jean-Michel Thibaux, a Frenchman who recently moved to Turkey,
Turkified his name and became a Turkish citizen; and Prof. Paul
Leidinger from Germany. Testifying against Perincek were
genocide specialists Yves Ternon and Raymond Kevorkian from
France and Tessa Hofmann from Germany. In a pointed reference
to the load of documents presented by Perincek, the Swiss
prosecutor told the court: "90 kilos of paper do not wipe out 90
years of history; and one million pages cannot get rid of one
million victims."
Judge Pierre-Henri Winzap was not too impressed either by
Perincek's documents or the arguments presented by the four
pro-Turkish academics. The Judge stated that the denial of the
accepted historical fact of the Armenian Genocide was an
arrogant provocation. In fact, the Swiss Parliament had
recognized the Armenian Genocide in 2003, despite heavy pressure
from the Turkish government. The Judge fined Perincek $7,350 in
lieu of a 90-day suspended jail term, ordered him to pay a
$2,450 fine and $4,750 for court costs.
In addition, the court warned Perincek that should he deny
the Armenian Genocide again within the next 24 months, he could
face imprisonment. Perincek thus became the first person to be
convicted under Switzerland's anti-racism law for denying the
Armenian Genocide. Article 261bis of the Swiss penal code --
which outlaws the denial, minimization or justification of
genocide -- was heretofore applied only to those who denied the
Jewish Holocaust.
Perincek's supporters tried unsuccessfully to pressure the
Swiss judiciary by holding noisy rallies outside the courthouse,
waving large Turkish flags and banners. In a highly
inappropriate move, the Turkish Justice Minister Cemil Cicek met
with his Swiss counterpart Christoph Blocher in Bern during the
weekend before the trial. Blocher, who is the leader of the
right-wing Swiss Popular Party, was severely criticized by Swiss
politicians and the media for having suggested in October 2006
during a visit to Turkey that this particular Swiss law should
be dropped.
Next in line to be tried for having denied the Armenian
Genocide during an earlier visit to Switzerland could be Yusuf
Halacoglu, the head of the Historical Society of Turkey.
Contrary to Perincek's defiant behavior, openly challenging the
Swiss authorities to try him in court, Halacoglu has been
reticent to return to Switzerland fearing interrogation and
possible detention. The Switzerland-Armenia Association (SAA)
and its co-president, Sarkis Shahinian should be commended for
initiating the court proceeding against Perincek and sparing no
effort in attaining this successful outcome. Given the special
role of the SAA in this case, the Judge ordered Perincek to pay
to the Swiss Armenian organization an additional $9,000 for
legal expenses and "moral compensation."
Clearly, this court case is bound to have far-reaching
consequences for the Armenian Cause. For years, Turkish
denialists gleefully noted that the Armenian Genocide could not
be qualified as such, since there were no court verdicts to that
effect. Furthermore, this verdict transcended the conviction of
Perincek as a lone Turkish individual. There were several
indications that the Turkish government itself was both directly
and indirectly implicated in this trial: Jean-Michel Thibaux, in
responding to a question from the Judge, admitted that he was
contacted by the Turkish Foreign Ministry and asked to testify
on behalf of Perincek; several officials of the Turkish
Consulate General in Geneva attended the trial; and when the
Judge asked Perincek to disclose his income, he divulged that he
merely earned about $2,500 a month. Despite his limited income,
Perincek somehow had managed to charter a large airliner to
transport his supporters from Turkey to Switzerland. Since it
was obvious that the Turkish authorities were backing Perincek
in a variety of ways, his conviction was a major setback for the
Turkish state as well. In a written statement, the Turkish
Foreign Ministry declared: "The court case was inappropriate,
groundless and controversial in every sense."
Fortunately, Perincek is now intent on doing even more
damage to Turkish denialism. He stated that he would appeal his
conviction to a higher Swiss court, and failing there, he would
take his case to the European Court of Human Rights in
Strasbourg.
Should Perincek go through with his planned appeals and
lose, Armenians would score more significant victories,
attaining legal recognition of the Armenian Genocide in both
Swiss and European courts.