HDP's Demirtaş Refuses Handcuffs, Not Brought to Court

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Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş would be brought to court to stand trial today (July 7) but wasn’t brought after refusing to be handcuffed.

Being imprisoned in Edirne Prison since November 4, 2016, Demirtaş would stood trial in person at 10 a.m. and that would be his first appearance since his arrest.

Demirtaş was connecting to the previous trials via Audio and Visual Information System.

Demirtaş: Handcuffing is illegal and unethical

Demirtaş commented on the subject and said “We will resist injustice”:

“I am still an MP whose parliamentary immunity is in effect. I represent people’s will. I find being handcuffed in a shuttle for hours is illegal and unethical.

“We will resist injustice in any case and protect honor of the people whom we represent”.

Being detained on November 4, 2016, HDP Co-Chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ (Yüksekdağ was relieved of her MP duties on February 21, 2017), HDP Group Deputy Chair İdris Baluken and the party’s MPs Leyla Birlik, Selma Irmak, Nursel Aydoğan, Gülser Yıldırım, Ferhat Encü and Abdullah Zeydan, were arrested on the same day.

MPs Ziya Pir, Sırrı Süreyya Önder, İmam Taşçıer, Hüda Kaya, Altan Tan, Ayhan Bilgen, Lezgin Botan, Nadir Yıldırım, who were detained in the same operation, were released on probation.

(AS/TK)