‘3 HDP Youth Assembly members abducted in İstanbul in a week’

* Photo: Mezopotamya Agency (MA)

Click to read the article in Turkish

The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) İstanbul Youth Assembly held a press conference at HDP İstanbul Office yesterday (August 30) and raised concerns about the recent pressures faced by their members.

The conference was attended by HDP Şırnak MP Hasan Özgüneş and HDP İstanbul Provincial Organization Co-Chair Erdal Avcı.

As reported by the Mezopotamya Agency (MA), HDP İstanbul Co-Chair Avcı said that there was a recent tendency to lead HDP's youth organization members to illegal activities by using force.

Underlining that such methods were used in the 1990s, Avcı noted that unidentified murders were committed as a result of these methods. Indicating that the same methods were now followed, Avcı said:

"The works of our youth assembly are open to the public. Their works are oriented towards raising awareness against the corruption of the youth and drug use. We do not accept these repressive practices."

Özgüneş: They tell the young, 'We will bury you'

Taking the floor after Avcı, HDP Şırnak MP Hasan Özgüneş said that young people were specially targeted in the recent period:

"They force young people to get in a vehicle and tell them, 'We will bury you in the grave.' They abduct them and offer them money. Crossing the line, they say, 'Even when you arson a store or set a vehicle on fire, we will always stand behind you and protect you.'

"We know the games played on young people. The abduction of our three friends in İstanbul is dangerous. It is my call to the state authorities and [Minister of Interior] Süleyman Soylu: Who is behind these gangs? How come can young people be abducted in İstanbul and such methods are used on them? How come does the state know nothing about it?

"Whoever is behind these incidents, bring them into light. Such methods come to mean openly telling the youth 'We will not let you do politics' in the legal area. We will follow up this issue."

Yaşa: They try to turn them into agents by torture

Murat Yaşa from the HDP Youth Assembly also made a brief speech at the conference. He said that their three members had been abducted by persons who introduced themselves as police officers in the last week. "They were forced to get into a vehicle blindfolded and with their hands tied from behind. They tried to turn them into agents by battery and torture," he said.

"Our friend Musa Taştan, who is a member of our youth assembly, has been intercepted, abducted and forced to become an agent by people who say they are from the intelligence organization since the day he became a member of the assembly. When he did not accept it, he was threatened with his family," Murat Yaşa indicated further. 

HDP MPs will reportedly bring the issue to the Parliamentary agenda and file a criminal complaint regarding the issue. (RT/SD)