ARRESTS IN LONDON AS A FRIENDLY GESTURE TO THE MURDEROUS REGIME OF TURKEY

by MG Fri Dec 13, 2002 16:37

Bertie and his cronies also support getting Turkey in to the EU as soon as possible, despite rape, torture and murder by the country's "security forces". Labour and the Green Party support this position. Turkey, let's not forget, has almost surpassed Saddam Hussein in its oppression of the Kurdish minority, whose language and culture is effectively banned and whose political leaders are dying on hunger strike in atrocious prison conditions.

Surprisingly, Fine Gael appears to be the only mainstream Irish political party that opposes Turkey being given a date for membership. Enda Kenny said the Turkish regime should merely be given a date for a declaration on whether or not it is fit for membership.

by Solidarity with Hunger Strikers in Turkey Fri Dec 13, 2002 18:50

Aye, Irish Times seems to have turned into in-house pro-Turkey journal. I sent a letter, as did others, concerning the pro-Turkey propaganda ad they published on Monday. Not printed of course, since we did not shell out 15,000 euro. Here is it anyway if anyone is interested.
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9th December 2002
Dear Madam,
The contrast between the front page photograph in the Irish Times, (Monday 9th December) and the half page ad. on page three, are stark. In the photograph an elderly Kurdish woman weeps in grief while remembering her relatives, who suffocated a year ago on a lorry in Wexford, as they fled Turkey seeking a safer life in Europe.

In the advertisement influential Turkish state agencies attempt to persuade us that Turkey is a democratic, prosperous and peaceful European State. The advertisement is aimed towards convincing the Irish government to support Turkey's accession to the EU. The ad. informs us that "The Turkey of today is a dynamic, sound democracy with a rich cultural heritage, just the place to enjoy all the values you expect to find elsewhere in Europe."

This may well be true if the democratic values one expects includes 10,000 political prisoners held for their opposition to the regime. Widespread torture - including sexual abuse and rape - in police stations and prisons have been documented by respected human rights defenders. Turkey's political code also bans left-wing groups and police frequently raid and close down their media outlets.

Despite a number of very recent and unproven legislative reforms, such as abolition of the death penalty, the Turkish state continues to implement a policy of holding 2,000 political prisoners in six 'isolation prisons'. The protests and hunger strikes against this policy have led to 101 deaths in over two years, and they are still ongoing. We are also approaching the second anniversary of the police and military attack on prisoners which resulted in 28 deaths, six of them women prisoners burned to death at Bayrampasa prison in Istanbul.

Turkey's isolation imprisonment policies have been condemned by agencies such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the European Committee for the Prevention of Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) as well as many trade union and legal bodies within Turkey itself. In early 2002 a possible solution to the protests against the isolation prison policy was brokered, only to be rejected by the Turkish government.

The Turkish advertisers are correct in one aspect of their ad. "Turkey - Actions Speak Louder Than Words".
yours, etc.

"Solidarity with Hunger Strikers in Turkey"

by Dave Sat Dec 14, 2002 00:10

Why should anyone be surprised? Tony played his part in the genocide in East Timor, so he is just been consistent in displaying his support for the regime in Ankara.

by Mags - Solidarity with Hunger Strikers in Turkey Mon Dec 16, 2002 17:47 thsireland at hotmail dot com

Death Fast Activists arrested and charged in England

Here is an update based on what information is available at present about the arrests of the activists. They are expected to be charged in court today (Monday 16th December), but no word on that yet.

Gurkan Gurr and Rory O'Driscoll plus four other activists for the Turkish Socialist and Death Fast causes have been charged in London under the Terrorism Act 2000.

In the early hours of Wednesday 11 December, 7 people were dragged from their homes, arrested and detained under the British Government’s most repressive piece of legislation, the Terrorism Act 2000. Dawn raids were also made on the office of the exile Turkish socialist DHKC Information Bureau.

Six people, four men and two woman have been charged with membership of a proscribed organisation and controlling property or assets of a proscribed group. The six are Songul Ozgur, Rory O'Driscoll, Allaatin Kalander, Gurkan Gurr, Selver Kapan and Birteen Kalayei. They were arrested in Cheshire and London last Wednesday. A Scotland Yard spokesman said: ‘All face the same two charges and all will appear at Bow Street Magistrates Court on Monday. The charges are being a member of a proscribed organisation, contrary to Section 11 of the Terrorism Act of 2000, and facilitating the retention or control of terrorist property, contrary to Section 18 of the Terrorism Act.’

The Terrorism Act 2000 allows people to be charged with membership of foreign terrorist groups, i.e. if Turkey says that the DHKP-C is terrorist then anyone linked to it can be charged. Obviously this sets a dangerous precedent for anyone fleeing persecution. The Terrorism Act 2000 effectively allows for people to be dragged from their homes and detained without trial at the will of the state.

The only "crime" of those who have been arrested and charged this week was to oppose the Turkish Government's well documented role in the imprisonment and torture of thousands of political dissenters and to organise support for Turkish political prisoners who are staging a hunger strike in protest at their torture - a hunger strike, which has been kept hidden by the British media and which so far has cost 101 lives.

These are ordinary men and women from our communities. Brave men and women who are prepared to speak out and let the world know about crimes the Turkish government is perpetrating against their family and friends in Turkey.

At the same time as these comrades were being arrested and detained, Blair was pushing for Turkey, a state that has murdered tens of thousands of it's Kurdish minority, the very people who Blair claims to be so concerned about in Iraq, to be given acceptance into the European Union. Concerns about Turkey's appalling human rights record are now of little concern when Blair himself is keen to copy their methods and further consolidate the use of Turkey as a forward base for the NATO war of expansion and subjugation into Asia and the Middle-East.

Solidarity with Hunger Strikers in Turkey
Monday 16th December 2002