Court Orders Release of Former HDP MP Birtane

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Diyarbakır 4th Heavy Penal Court has ordered the release of Mülkiye Birtane, a former Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) MP and Democratic Society Congress (DTK) council board member.

HDP MP Leyla Güven, who was at the courthouse to watch the hearing, announced the release order on Twitter.

Birtane was detained during a house raid on November 26, 2018. The prosecutor's office requested her arrest for "membership of an illegal organization" over her activities at the DTK. The court remanded her in custody on November 30, 2018.

In the previous hearings, Birtane's attorneys requested her release due to her health problems but the court did not release the politician due to "suspicion of escape."

About Mülkiye Birtane

HDP Kars MP in the 24th term of the parliament, DTK board council member, teacher.

She was born in Kars in 1964. She was graduated from Atatürk University Kazım Karabekir Faculty of Education Department of English.

She worked as a lecturer at Van Yüzüncü Yıl University for five years. After that, she worked as a teacher. She was an executive at the Eğitim-Sen union Diyarbakır branch. She was in the founders' council of the Kurdish Language Research and Development Association and Kybele Women's Cooperative. She worked as a columnist at the Azadiya Welat newspaper. (TP/VK)