TURKEY
Solidarity Platform with Imprisoned Journalists (TGDP)
TO THE PRESS AND PUBLIC OPINION

 Necati ABAY

 

Over 60 journalists, writers, artists and sympathisers of the Socialist Platform of the Oppressed (ESP) have been detained as a result of police raids to the Atilim newspaper in Istanbul and raids in various other towns towards the ESP and the Labourer Women’s Association (EKD).

? Amongst those detained is Haci Orman chair of the Foundation for Science, Education, Esthetics, Culture, Arts Researches (BEKSAV) and Muhsin Cobanoglu the independent candidate for the Mayor in Hatay, he is also the ESP representative of the same city.
? End the detention terror in Turkey
? Freedom of Speech, Activity and Organising.

Atilim newspaper has announced that in the early hours of 10/03/2009 the Turkish Police has raided the technical office of its newspaper alongside many homes and offices in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Adana, Hatay and Mersin. The office of the ESP in Istanbul has also been raided by the police. The police forcefully made its way to the office as there was no one there in the early hours.

Below are some of the names of the people that have been detained;

Hacı Orman (chair of the Foundation for Science, Education, Esthetics, Culture, Arts Researches (BEKSAV and Editor of Sanat ve Hayat (Art and Live) magazine), Atılım newspaper editor Figen Yüksekdağ and its correspondents Önder Öner and Çetin Poyraz, Nazım Hikmet Marxist Science Academy coordinator Alp Altınörs, Adana ESP representative Hülya Gerçek, Sevilay Gündoğan and İbrahim Yapıcı; Ankara ESP representative Alihan Alhan and others which surnames have yet not been identified Bahtiyar, Cebrail, Serdar, Savaş; EKD management Committee members Münevver İltemur; ESP sympathisers Hatice Aydemir, Yusuf Demir, Hasan Coşar, Hasan Ozan, İrfan Gerçek, Tarık Tepeli, Zelal Armutlu, Bülent Kapar, Abbas Duman, Yüksel Bulut, Yeşim Sönmez, Hızır Uzundağ, Aşur İşbilir, Erhan Çalparmak, others whose surnames have yet not been learned Kurtuluş, Yücel and Eylem, In İzmir member of the Socialist Youth Organisation (SGD) Şerife Erbay... The Police have also detained the joint candidate for Hatay Council elections and ESP representative Muhsin Çobanoğlu. It has also been announced that the doors of Ezgi Music in Hatay have been broken by the police and raided. Gökben Keskin, İlker Tatlı Pınar, Mersin'de Hacer Koçak, Erden Fesli, Esat Süner, Seher Kilisli, Deniz Melih Özşen have also been detained in Hatay.  

The police has also raided the home of Cem Dinc who is the president of Limter-Is union and have confiscated his computer.

It is being reported that the decision for police raids against legal institutions and houses were taken by the Istanbul 10th Court of Heavy Penalty, but the reason of arrestment was not clarified.

We are face to face with the widespread implementation of Anti-Terror Laws which has been named as “Anti-Social Law” by the social oppositional forces. The police raids and detentions are being carried out at same time all over the country. As it can be remembered, in 2006, the institutions such as Ozgur Radyo, Atilim Newspaper, BEKSAV, ESP, Limter-Is Union and etc. were raided and more than 100 people detained, and half of those people detained were imprisoned. Now, the recent numbers of people who have taken into police custody have reached 60. We are worried about witnessing a new way of mass detention under the so-called Anti-Terror Law. The detention of Muhsin Cobanoglu, a joint candidate for Hatay Council in the coming local elections, represents another incident showing the unlimited arbitrary attitude of the authorities.

We call on all people and organisations, the members of press, public and defenders of human rights, freedom of thought and expression to be sensitive on the issue and condemn unlawful police raids and detentions in Turkey.

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