Journalism organizations: Whoever stays silent now is a party to this crime

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Shortly after mafia boss Sedat Peker implied the role of former Interior Minister Mehmet Ağar in the unidentified murders of journalists Uğur Mumcu and Kutlu Adalı in his latest video, the Journalists' Union of Turkey (TGS), Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey (DİSK) Press Union and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have released statements.

In a statement on its social media account, the TGS has said, "We demand that the allegations as to the murders of Mumcu and Adalı be investigated. We demand that the suspects be put on trial."

Calling on the prosecutors to fulfil their duty, the TGS has said, "Pull out a brick, let the wall collapse," referring to a conversation between Mehmet Ağar and Güldal Mumcu, the wife of Uğur Mumcu, after his passing.

About "Pull out a brick, let the wall collapse": According to a book penned by Güldal Mumcu regarding the developments following her husband's passing, when she told Mehmet Ağar, the then Interior Minister of Turkey, "We are constantly faced by obstacles. As if a wall was being built," Mehmet Ağar responded, "Yes, Güldal, a wall is being built." When Güldal Mumcu said, "Then, pull out a brick, let the wall collapse," Ağar reportedly said, "I cannot."

#UğurMumcu ve #KutluAdalı cinayetlerine dair iddiaların soruşturulmasını istiyoruz. Şüphelilerin yargılanmasını talep ediyoruz. Savcıları göreve çağırıyoruz. Tuğla çekilsin, duvar yıkılsın! pic.twitter.com/viPBLSpqyv

— Gazeteciler Sendikası (@TGS_org_tr) May 23, 2021

Speaking to the ANKA News Agency about the recent allegations, TGS Chair Gökhan Durmuş has also said: "The gang leader made statements indicating that both murders were committed by the deep state. It is now - of course - our primary demand that both the government and prosecutors take action as soon as possible and investigate these allegations and that the related people be interrogated and the real perpetrators be identified.

"Were these people involved in other unidentified murders like those of these two journalists amid these dirty relations? This needs to be brought into light and the necessary penalties must be given."

DİSK Press Union: We call a murderer a murderer

The DİSK Press Union has also made a statement on Twitter. "We have always said the perpetrators of these murders. We have always called murderers murderers," the union has said, briefly adding: "The murderers of [Abdi] İpekçi, Mumcu, [Metin] Göktepe, Adalı, [Hrant] Dink, [Musa] Anter are the same. Whoever stays silent now is a party to this crime."

Biz bu cinayetlerin faillerini hep söyledik. Hep katile katil dedik. İpekçi'nin, Mumcu'nun, Göktepe'nin, Adalı'nın, Dink'in, Anter'in katilleri aynı. Şimdi içeriden itiraf geliyor. Artık susan herkes suç ortağıdır.#UgurMumcu pic.twitter.com/ViV8dW3kSf

— DİSK Basın-İş (@Disk_Basin_is) May 23, 2021

RSF: Statements must be investigated

RSF Representative to Turkey Erol Önderoğlu has also said, "The statements of Sedat Peker about the murders of Uğur Mumcu and Kutlu Adalı, which were covered up in the 1990s or whose instigators have been overlooked for 30 years, must be investigated."

Önderoğlu has underlined that "the legitimacy or position of Sedat Peker does not require a silence" about his allegations.

RSF temsilcisi @ErolOnderoglu: 90'lı yılların sümenaltı edilen veya azmettiricileri 30 yıldır görmezden gelinen #UğurMumcu ve #KutluAdalı cinayetlerine dair Sedat Peker'in yaptığı açıklamalar soruşturulmalıdır. Peker'in meşruiyeti veya konumu sessizliği gerektirmez. #Cezasızlık pic.twitter.com/YzGFHbEj78

— RSF Türkçe (@RSF_tr) May 23, 2021

What did Sedat Peker say?

In the seventh and latest of his videos about the 'state-mafia relations', Sedat Peker, who is accused of leading a criminal organization, said, "I think Uğur Mumcu is a martyr. Look at what he was writing when he was killed. There are always drug fields and arms trade in terror sites. Who came there first when he fell a martyr? Mehmet Ağar. The murderer always comes first. And he said the following to his wife: 'If I pull out a brick, the state will collapse.'

Referring to the murder of Kutlu Adalı in 1996, Peker also alleged that the murder was committed by a group affiliated with Mehmet Ağar-Korkut Eken. (HA/SD)