RIGHTS - Bianet

RIGHTS

Page 260

Police Marked Murdered Priest as “Separatist”

It has emerged that murdered priest Andrea Santoro’s phones had been tapped for three months at the time of his murder. Dink murder suspect Yasin Hayal had also been monitored for suspected al Qaida leanings.

21 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Prime Minister Again Sues Cartoonists

In his fifth suit against satirical cartoon magazines, this time against Leman, Prime Minister Erdogan is demanding 20,000 YTL compensation.

21 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Five More Fires in Turkish Homes in Germany since Ludwigshafen

After the unsolved fire in Ludwigshafen which claimed nine lives, there have been five more fires in Turkish homes.

20 February 2008

And Here are Bianet’s Questions for Prime Minister Erdogan…

And Here are Bianet’s Questions for Prime Minister Erdogan…

Three journalists and an academic asked Prime Minister Erdogan questions on live TV. Because we feel that their list was missing vital questions, here is our own list.

20 February 2008 Tolga Korkut

An Acquittal in Article 301: A Ray of Light?

After the Tunceli prosecution dropped a case against human rights activist Baris Yildirim, now a Tunceli court has followed the decree of the Supreme Court of Appeals to acquit trade unionist Hanefi Bekmezci.

20 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Kosovo’s Independence Dividing the World

Several countries, including Turkey, have recognised Kosovo’s independence. Those opposing the move fear that it will set a precedence for other regions.

20 February 2008 Erhan Üstündağ

452 Claims of Torture in 2007, Says TIHV

452 Claims of Torture in 2007, Says TIHV

The Turkish Human Rights Foundation (TIHV) has published its annual report, in which it says that 452 people applied to its centres with claims of torture and maltreatment.

20 February 2008 A. Nilüfer Zengin Kürkçü

AI Fears for Life of Malatya Murder Case Lawyer

Amnesty International has started an urgent action call for lawyer Orhan Kemal Cengiz, joint attorney in the Malatya murder trial; the NGO says it fears for his life.

19 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Dink Lawyers: Co-Plaintiffs But Left in the Dark

Before the fourth hearing of the Hrant Dink murder trial on 25 February, there is stil evidence of lack of transparency as the co-plaintiffs are not informed of procedures.

19 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Letter to President Calls for Solution to Kurdish Issue

Letter to President Calls for Solution to Kurdish Issue

More than a hundred academics, lawyers and human rights activists have signed a letter to President Gül calling for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish issue, which, they say, needs a political approach, and not court rooms.

18 February 2008 A. Nilüfer Zengin Kürkçü

Journalist in “Insult” Case Released from Prison

Journalist Aktas was sent to prison for “insulting” the former vice governor of Mus in the press; however, a court has overruled the sentence.

18 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

FIDH: “Turkey Must End Impunity of Political Violence”

Following a mission in Turkey on the occasion of the third hearing of the Hrant Dink murder trial, the FIDH published a report on 13 February, calling for action on human rights.

17 February 2008

Kosovo Declares Independence

Kosovo Declares Independence

The Kosovan parliament has made a unilateral declaration of its independence from Serbia. The EU and the USA support independence, while Serbia and Russia oppose it.

17 February 2008 Tolga Korkut

RSF: Article 301 is “Enemy of Press Freedom”

In its annual report for 2008, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) criticised Article 301 and the nationalist obstruction of press freedom. The murder of Hrant Dink could have been prevented.

14 February 2008

Activists Call for Release of “Peace Mothers”

Two “peace mothers” were taken into custody after trying to make a press statement in Taksim. Activists have called for their release.

14 February 2008 A. Nilüfer Zengin Kürkçü

Scarf Freedom Raises Reform Impatience

Cynics have remarked how quickly the ruling AKP acted on lifting the headscarf ban for university students while ignoring other, more pressing issues of rights and freedoms.

13 February 2008 Fatma Demırellı,Selçuk Gültaşlı

Academics: We Need Freedom as Well as Laicism

Around 400 academics have signed a statement which calls for democratisation not only around clothing rules at university.

13 February 2008 Tolga Korkut

Turkey Urgently Needs Peace Journalism!

Turkey Urgently Needs Peace Journalism!

A reaction in the Turkish press to the fire in Ludwigshafen which killed nine Turks shows how great the need for more balanced reporting is. A newspaper accusing Germany of covering up a neo-Nazi attack is perpetrating racism itself.

13 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Five Months Imprisonment for Kurdish Petition

Publisher Mehdi Tanrikulu has been sentenced to five months imprisonment for writing a petititon in Kurdish and for speaking Kurdish in court. He will appeal against the sentence.

12 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

“Peace Can Only Happen with Women’s Liberation”

The Peace Parliament organised a symposium entitled “Democratisation and the Kurdish Issue during the New Constitutional Process.” Without women, peace is not achievable.

12 February 2008 A. Nilüfer Zengin Kürkçü

Third Dink Hearing: Calls for Justice Renewed

Third Dink Hearing: Calls for Justice Renewed

At the third hearing of the Hrant Dink murder trial yesterday, suspected instigators Tuncel and Hayal were questioned. The Hrant Dink Sensitivity Group called for justice.

12 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Turks, Germans Mourn Together for Victims of Ludwigshafen Fire

On Sunday, Turks and Germans gathered to say good-bye to the nine victims of the fire in Ludwigshafen last week. The bodies were then flown to Turkey.

11 February 2008

Tercüman Newspaper on Trial for Insulting Journalists Magden and Temelkuran

After attacking journalists Magden and Temelkuran who spoke out against the nationalist manipulation of children, the Tercüman newspaper is being taken to court.

11 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Today Third Hearing in Dink Murder Case

Today Third Hearing in Dink Murder Case

The trial of the murder suspects of journalist Hrant Dink continues with the third hearing today. The hearing will be recorded and might yet be opened to the press, pending a court decision.

11 February 2008 Erolönderoglu

Dink Trial Still Missing Main Protagonists...

There is continuing reluctance to link the different trials in Trabzon, Samsun and Istanbul concerning the murder of journalist Hrant Dink. Senior police and gendarmerie officers are still not on trial.

7 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

RSF Joins Condemnation of Cartoonists’ Investigation

RSF joins the International Press Institute and the Cartoonists’ Rights Network International in their condemnation of the planned prosecution of two cartoonists.

7 February 2008 Erhan Üstündağ

Call for Peace from Cudi Mountain

The demonstrators who had set out from Diyarbakir to Sirnak in order to protest against cross-border operations spent the night at Cudi Mountain.

7 February 2008 A. Nilüfer Zengin Kürkçü

BIA² 2007 Media Monitoring Report – Full Text

BIA² 2007 Media Monitoring Report – Full Text

The BIA² 2007 Media Monitoring Report reveals that there are still countless violations of press freedom across the country. There were also more attacks on journalists in 2007 than in the previous year, with the shocking murder of Hrant Dink still fresh in everyone's mind.

6 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

Arson Suspicions Set Turkey on Edge

After a fire in a building in Germany killed nine Turks, five of them children, there have been suspicions that the building was set fire to deliberately.

6 February 2008

No Court Case against Hrant Dink’s Lawyer

An Istanbul court dropped the case against Hrant Dink’s lawyer Erdal Dogan for writing that nationalist lawyer Fuat Turgut should be tried for threatening Hrant Dink.

6 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu

20 Thousand Hail The March Against Cross Border Operations

20 Thousand Hail The March Against Cross Border Operations

A march against cross-border operations in Northern Iraq, organised by the pro-Kurdish DTP, was sent off by some 20 thousand people in Diyarbakir. Convoy joining from Istanbul was held up after constant searches.

6 February 2008 A. Nilüfer Zengin Kürkçü

Journalist Acquitted after Five Years

After questioning the expenditure of a district governor in the Devrek district of Zonguldak, journalist Ibrahim Tig faced a five-year trial. He was acquitted on 30 January.

5 February 2008 Erol Önderoğlu