Gül: We are Released but Imprisoned Journalists Issue not Over

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14th Heavy Penal Court has ordered release of Cumhuriyet daily Chief Editor Can Dündar, and its Ankara Representative Erdem Gül following Constitutional Court’s verdict that Dündar and Gül have been exposed to “violation of right”.

CLICK - CONSTITUTIONAL COURT RULES JOURNALISTS CAN DÜNDAR, ERDEM GÜL EXPOSED TO VIOLATION OF RIGHT

Their wives Dilek Dündar, Aslı Işık Gül, their children, Dündar’s mother Öznur Dündar, People’s Republican Party (CHP) Vice Chairperson Sezgin Tanrıkulu, CHP İstanbul MP Eren Erdem, artist and writer Zülfü Livaneli, journalist and writer Nebil Özgentürk, their relatives, colleagues and friends acclaimed them in front of Silivri Prison.

Dündar and Gül made a speech in front of the prison.

CLICK - COURT RULES RELEASE OF CAN DÜNDAR, ERDEM GÜL

“Journalism struggle”

Erdem Gül has said, “I wish it didn’t have happened, I wish the present court hadn’t left it for the AYM”.

Gül emphasized that there are still many journalists in prisons, and issue of journalists being arrested is not over with their release. Gül emphasizing they will continue the struggle for their over 30 colleagues in prisons, thanked those who have supported them.

Prosecution was started as to the article published with the headline “Here are the weapons Erdoğan claim to not exist” on May 29 over “Procuring information as to state security”, “Political and military espionage”, “Declaring confidential information”, “Propagandizing terror organization”.

Gül: We are going out but our friends are still inside

Erdem Gül’s speech is as follows:

“This is an ‘I wish it didn’t’ story. If we keep up this ‘I wish’, we have to thank the Constitutional Court not just for ourselves, but for taking a legal step to overcome obstacles before democracy and all sorts of liberties in Turkey. But let us say the ‘I wish it didn’t’ once more, I wish the court had done that, I wish it didn’t perform this arrest. I wish the present court hadn’t left it for the AYM.

“Then, we are coming to conclusion that there are ways to make in Turkey with respect to legal system. Can [Dündar] said it; We are going out but it doesn’t mean that the issue of journalists being arrested is over.

“We don’t see this as a huge incident in Turkey’s history of freedom of thought. What matters is togetherness of the whole press, anyone seeking freedom of expression and all sorts of freedoms, in addition to those opposing polarization”. (ÇT/HK/TK)

* Photo: Abdullah Coşkun – İstanbul/AA