Turkey’s Persecution of a Novelist

From UPI:

Turkey’s charges against a well-known novelist have become another obstacle to its membership in the European Union.

Turkish membership is one of the major items on the table as the EU foreign ministers meet in Wales.

Orhan Pamuk is in hiding after being charged with “denigrating national identity” by saying that Turks are reluctant to admit the massacre of about 1 million Armenians during World War I.

Former Europe Minister Dennis McShane, a Labor member of the British parliament, said he remains a strong supporter of Turkey, The Australian reported.

“But if the authorities persist with this attack on a great European writer, then many of us who are strong supporters of Turkey will be forced to change our minds.”

Turkey’s refusal, so far, to recognize Cyprus is also a problem, since Cyrpus is an EU member.