"Detention Turned into Punishment"

About 300 people demonstrated against the arrest of members the Socialist Democracy Party (SDP) and the Platform for Social Freedom (TÖP) on Istanbul's centrally located Taksim Square on Sunday (21 November). The members of both legal political groups were arrested on 21 September this year because of their alleged affiliation to the "Revolutionary Headquarters" terrorist organizaiton. Requests for their release were dismissed.

The protestors criticized the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) with banners reading "So this is the AKP Democracy, whose turn is it?" The demonstration went along the popular Istiklal Avenue towards Taksim Square and was also attended by Tayfun Görgün, Secretary General of the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions (DİSK).

Members of the SDP, TÖP and other protestors shouted slogans saying "Break down the dungeons, freedom to the prisoners" and "The conspiracies are not and will not be ripped out".

Atak: Detention is turned into punishment once more

Serkan Atak, Istanbul Provincial Chairman of the Labour Movement Party (EHP) read out a statement on behalf of the "Whose turn is it?" Initiative on Taksim Square. He criticized that an indictment had still not been prepared yet even though a full two months had passed.

"It is still uncertain when our friends are going to be taken to court. In the light of previous examples, the arrests as the result of this operation allegedly carried out as a precautionary measure are being transformed into a punishment once more. Just as it was said by President Abdullah Gül, they are being kept in prison for months without even knowing the charges pressed against them".

Atak called on the Justice Ministry and the Ministry of the Interior to announce the results of the investigation immediately. He claimed that an investigation regarding the detention of 13 people could not inflict that big a strain on the judiciary.

Detained for two months

13 left wing activists were taken into custody on 21 September 2010 and arrested four days later, among them SDP Chairman Rıdvan Turan, TÖP spokesmen Oğuzhan Kayserilioğlu and Tuncay Yılmaz, SDP Deputy Chairs Günay Kulibay and Ecevit Piroğlu, Central Steering Board Member Ulaş Bayraktaroğlu, SDP members Özgür Cafer Kalafat and İbrahim Turgut and TÖP member Semih Aydın.

Additionally, the former Chief of Police of Eskişehir, Hanefi Avcı, was arrested for allegedly aiding an illegal organization. (EÖ/VK)