An Istanbul-based Armenian Stephan Pechdimaldji’s open letter titled “Dissent in Turkey” was posted at the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Facebook page.

As the letter sent by Pechdimaldji’ to The New York Times said, “Recent events in Turkey should not surprise Western observers who continue to succumb to the falsehoods and dishonesties of Ankara’s being a model democracy for booming Islamic countries. So-called free speech is embodied in a news media friendly to the government, a convenient tool, and more journalists are imprisoned for voicing their opposition than in any other country in the world, according to Reporters Without Borders.”

“Dissent is something that all democracies should embrace and not contain with water cannons or bullets. It’s amazing to see how Turkey masks its authoritarian rule by redefining its present by trying to change its past.

What has been transpiring in Taksim Square over the last several days is something the minority populations living in Turkey, like the Armenians, have been aware of for decades. Finally, the world is starting to see Ankara’s true colors,” the letter said.