Turkish court drops case against Pamuk

A Turkish court has dropped the case against the country's best-known author, Orhan Pamuk, who had been charged with insulting the Turkish identity.

Pamuk's lawyer, Haluk Inanici, confirmed Monday that the court had dropped the case and told the Associated Press that the decision was "good news for freedom of expression in Turkey."

The trial began on Dec. 16 but the judge adjourned the case until Feb. 7, saying the court had to seek the approval of Turkey's justice ministry to proceed.

Last week, Turkish Justice Minister Cemil Cicek said the ministry had no say over the case under a new penal code. He left the decision up to the Istanbul court, which on Monday, interpreted the government response as a refusal to give permission to try the case and dropped the charges against Pamuk, according to Inanici.

The charges against Pamuk — the best-selling author behind Snow and My Name is Red —stem from an interview he gave to a Swiss newspaper in 2005. He spoke of Turkey's role in the deaths of Armenians during the First World War and the killing of Kurdish people during the 1980s.

The paper quoted the writer as saying that "30,000 Kurds and one million Armenians were killed in these lands and nobody but me dares to talk about it."

The Turkish government has suppressed discussion of the killings. It particularly objects to the use of the word genocide. Pamuk faced death threats and a public protest.

However, Turkey has been under pressure from the European Union and from writers groups worldwide to become more open about its history, and to withdraw the charges against Pamuk.

Last year, Turkey applied to join the E.U., which said Pamuk's case raised issues about freedom of speech.

The British branch of PEN, the international writers support group, has said Turkey's laws regarding insulting the Turkish identity contravene UN and E.U. human rights agreements, both of which Turkey has signed.

Lawyer Kemal Kerincsiz, a Turkish nationalist and one of those who had publicly pushed for a trial for Pamuk, said he was planning to appeal Monday's decision.