Turkey: Turkey's press has hailed as a victory for democracy a controversial conference on the massacres of Armenians 90 years ago, but nationalist protesters have called it a betrayal of the nation.
The conference, twice cancelled due to the acute sensitivity of the Armenian question, has been billed as a litmus test for freedom of expression in Turkey just days before it begins long-delayed EU membership talks.
Nationalist demonstrators hurled eggs and tomatoes at participants as they arrived at Istanbul's private Bilgi University to discuss claims that Ottoman Turks committed genocide against some 1½ million Armenians during and after the first World War.
"Free discussion, free protest," said Turkey's top-selling Hurriyet newspaper, noting that both participants and demonstrators freely expressed their opinions.
