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NEWS

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RSF Condemns Use of Article 301

RSF condemns the decision to prosecute Arat Dink, the son of slain Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, and three other journalists employed by his newspaper, the weekly Agos, for insulting Turkish identity under the infamous article 301.

Semdinli Case to Continue in Civilian Court

Despite complaints by the defence, a higher tribunal in Van has decreed that the Semdinli case will continue to be heard in a civilian court. The suspects will not be freed on bail.

Turkey Closed to Refugees

Turkey does not recognise those coming from the East and from African countries as refugees or displaced persons. However, people coming from Europe are given this recognition. The UN and the EU are putting pressure on Turkey.

22 June 2007 Murat Utku

Radio Chief Coordinator Faces Life Sentence

After a police operation in September 2006, targeting the Marxist Leninist Communist Party, radio coordinator Füsun Erdogan and 22 others, among them writers and journalists, face heavy sentences. Their trial begins on 26 October.

Note the Difference in Mines!

The Initiative for a Turkey without Mines has drawn attention to the fact that there is a difference between land mines, which kill 15-20 thousand people worldwide every year and the explosives controlled by remote control that are used by the PKK.

Independent Candidates Not Waste of Votes

Prime Minister Erdogan had commented that independent candidates were a waste of votes. However, the independent candidates are there to make human rights violations visible. In the case of the DTP, they may even form a group in parliament.

21 June 2007 Tolga Korkut

Sociologist Besikci on Trial Again

Sociologist Ismail Besikci, well-known for his life-long mission of writing about Kurds, is facing yet another trial for one of his articles. Besikci had written an article for the bilingual Kurdish popular culture magazine Esmer.

ECHR Interpret Limits to Freedom of Speech

Although the European Court of Human Rightsusually decrees against court decisions in Turkey, themost recent case is an example to the contrary.Demirels sentence was found not excessive. In threeother cases, though, Turkey was condemned.

Protest to GLBT Association Closure Demand

The demand of the Istanbul governors office forthe closure of Lambdaistanbul, an association forlesbians, gays, bisexuals, transvestites andtranssexuals, has provoked reaction in Ankara. Asimilar demand had been dismissed on legalgrounds.

Erdogan Points to Bulgarian Model

In run-up to the general elections, the question has beenasked whether the pro-Kurdish DTP would be a viablecoalition partner. Erdogan pointed to thetransformation of the MRF in Bulgaria in return as a possibility.

Rakel Dink Accepts IPA Prize

Rakel Dink, widow of murdered journalist Hrant Dink, accepted the International Publishers Associations Special Freedom Prize during a ceremony in Cape Town. Also honoured were publisher Trevor Ncube and murdered journalist Anna Politkovskaya.

More News from the Election Front

Turkish elections are just over a month away. Several uncertain candidates have been able to confirm their candidacies. Control of the media during pre-election period will increase. Istanbul independent candidates have launched their election campaig

Judiciary Ignores Right to Life

A Turkish court has denied compensation to the families of dead and injured children who, when herding sheep, played with explosives they found. The ECHR has convicted Turkey on this issue before.

Internet Campaign for Peace

Conveners of a peace conference held in January, entitled Turkey Looking for Peace have begun a petition on the Internet to call for peace in the country. Referring to the Kurdish issue, the text declares that it is vital that peace is delivered.

Murdered Dinks Thoughts on Trial

In the case that had been opened against murdered journalist Hrant Dink for stating that he believed an Armenian genocide had taken place, the prosecution has demanded that the owner and the manager of Dinks Agos newspaper be punished under Article 301

Deep State Surfacing

After a police raid on a home in Ümraniye, a suburb of Istanbul, the secret weapons arsenal found has turned out to belong to retired petty officer Oktay Yildirim, one of the founders of the ultra-nationalist Kuvayi Milliye Association (KMD).

Deep State Surfacing

After a police raid on a home in Ümraniye, a suburb of Istanbul, the secret weapons arsenal found has turned out to belong to retired petty officer Oktay Yildirim, one of the founders of the ultra-nationalist Kuvayi Milliye Association (KMD).

ECHR Considering Turkish Cases

Today, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) is to start hearing the appeals of several Turkish journalists who have been penalised with prison sentences or publishing bans for their news and articles.

Independent Candidates Hope for Change

The independent candidates of the left and of the pro-Kurdish DTP have got clear ideas about their mission, should they be elected into parliament. Tüzel, independent candidate in Izmir, and Geylani and Ike, all see the need for more democracy.

Military Thwarted in Semdinli Case

The 3rd Heavy Penal Court in Van has decided not to go along with the demand of the Supreme Court of Appeals that the Semdinli case be tried before a military court. However, it has accepted the demand to reopen the trial. The next hearing is 11 July.

Working for Women Without a Life

Two women, Ayse Tükrükcü and Saliha Ermez, both former sex workers, are preparing to stand as independent candidates in Istanbul. In Turkey, there are 68 brothels but only 32 womens shelters, and one of their aims is to increase the number of the latter.

Dink 301 Trial Continues to Haunt Colleagues

After the murder of journalist Hrant Dink, the trials against him under Article 301 were dropped. However, other journalists from the Armenian newspaper Agos, Sarkis Seropyan, Arat Dink and Karin Karakasli are still on trial. Their next hearing is 14 June

301 Doesnt Exist Europe

An international conference on freedom of expression in Turkey and the EU, organised by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and hosted at Bilgi University in Istanbul, participants discussed threats to freedom of expression and compared the situation.

Say No to a Military Dictatorship!

It is of vital importance that the general elections take place and that both the common independent candidates of the left and the independent candidates of the DTP are able to form a third pole in parliament.

12 June 2007 Ertuğrul Kürkçü

Army Calls for Mass Reaction to Terror

After the e-warning of 27 April this year, the General Staff has again published a controversial article on its website. Again late at night, and this time the website called on the noble Turkish people to take part in a mass reflex against terror.

People in South-East Want Peace

Local journalists in the three south-eastern provinces which have been declared temporary security zones (Siirt, Sirnak and Hakkari) have said that daily life is not much changed, but that a general increase in violence worries people.

To Go or Not to Go

On June 6th, a premature report of a big Turkish invasion of northern Iraq rocked markets. Certainly thousands of Turkish troops, backed by tanks and artillery, have massed for a possible offensive against Kurdish PKK rebels in Iraq.

8 June 2007 Amberin Zaman

Three Provinces Declared Security Zones

Turkish General Staff has announced that the three south-eastern provinces of Siirt, Hakkari and Sirnak have been turned into temporary security zones from 9 June until 9 September, meaning that civilian entry into these provinces will be restricted.

Human Rights Activists Face Imprisonment

A penal court in Adana, south of Turkey, has sentenced three members of the Adana branch of the Association for Human Rights (IHD) to imprisonment for criticising the Return to Life operations of December 2000.

8 June 2007 Erol Önderoğlu

ECHR Convicts Turkey in Gold Mine Case

Turkey has been convicted by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for ignoring court orders to stop the Eurogold mining company, and for the government to give the said company special permission to continue extracting.

The Left Protests Against Privatisation

Based on World Bank data, it is claimed that, worldwide, Turkey has privatised the most in the last four years. Representatives of the Turkish left have decried this development and said it results in poverty for the masses while a few enjoy the benefits.

604 Independent Candidates for Elections

In the general elections of this year, there will be 604 independent candidates standing, about 15 of them women. Political parties who cannot hope to overcome the 10 percent electoral hurdle are also fielding independent candidates.