SAMAST OFFERS VIOLENCE CREED
Hurriyet
Feb 24 2009
Turkey
ISTANBUL – A person can resort to violence if his or her national
values are insulted, according to Ogun Samast, who is serving a
prison sentence for the assassination of Armenian-Turkish journalist
Hrant Dink.
His comment was in response to a survey of 1,650 sentenced or
arrested youths out of 2,200 in 21 prisons by a parliamentary research
commission for youth and school violence.
Samast was younger than 18 when he fatally shot Dink on Jan. 19,
2007, in Istanbul. The survey revealed that Samast’s profile was
80 percent similar to his criminal peers, daily Milliyet reported
yesterday. Samast responded in the survey that in issues regarding
honor or insulting national values, a person could resort to violence.
Samast said he used to carry a knife when he went out. This was
because of threats in the environment. He watched "Kurtlar Vadisi"
(Valley of Wolves), a television series about the mafia and "deep
state" relations. He used to watch TV for around three hours a day
before he went jail. Samast said he used to go to the Internet cafÂ~Ns
every day. Samast said he got in fights in the year before he went
to prison. He said he believes "the fear of Allah, conscience and
merciful feelings" should be strengthened among young people in order
to decrease violence. He also said that sexual intercourse outside of
marriage and the consumption of alcohol and drugs should be decreased.
Samast said he is hopeful about the future and believes that life is
worth living, but he sometimes thinks that he’d rather die.
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2009/02/25/ankara-samast-offers-violence-creed/
