hunger strike

Ankara Governorship has put a ban on singing anthems and songs loudly as well as chanting slogans and making demonstration and press statements on Yüksel Street and the surrounding area where the protests and demonstrations continue against dismissals through statutory decrees and in solidarity with Özakça and Gülmen on hunger strike.

HDP Co-Chair Demirtaş has written a letter from prison for Gülmen and Özakça, asking them to end the hunger strike.

Interior Minister Soylu has threatened 111 artists, activists and writers, who placed a petition on four newspapers on 111th day of the hunger strikes, and the newspapers that published it: “Do you realized what you signed? And what about those who publish it to encourage terror groups?”

111 figures including Ayşe Kulin, Ahmet Ümit, Ferzan Özpetek, Hayko Çepkin, Murathan Mungan, Müjde Ar, Sıla Gençoğlu, Zuhal Olcay have signed the petition in support of Gülmen and Özakça.

Secretary General of the Council of Europe Jagland has stated that he will call PM Yıldırım and ask him for release of Gülmen and Özakça who have been on hunger strike for 111 days.

Ankara Bar has stated that Özakça is very exhausted and he has difficulty in speaking and that Gülmen couldn’t come to visiting area.

Koyuncu from Ankara Chamber of Medicine has expressed concerns about lives of Gülmen and Özakça on the 100th day of their hunger strike and added that the dismissals of academics had negative impacts in the whole society.

Academic Gülmen and teacher Özakça are on the 100th day of their hunger strike, which they have gone on to be reinstated to their jobs from which they were discharged through a statutory decree.

Roberto Saviano, a writer from Italy has sent a solidarity message for academic Nuriye Gülmen and and teacher Semih Özakça who are on a hunger strike to be reinstated to their jobs.

Mechanical engineer Olcay Abalay is on the 8th day on the hunger strike he went on in order to improve the prison conditions and put an end to the mistreatment in prison.

People who staged protests in support of Gülmen and Özakça on hunger strike were detained; as the protesters were released, prosecutor’s office ordered that the t-shirts with imprint image of Gülmen and Özakça be seized.

Author Atwood said “Please support all people advocating freedom of expression and democracy in Turkey” in the message she sent in support of Gülmen and Özakça.

Director Costa Gavras has delivered a message in support of arrested educators Gülmen and Özakça, who are on hunger strike.

Nobel Laureate author J.M. Coetzee has sent a message for Gülmen and Özakça, said that “Turkey needs to return to the rule of law”.

Kemal Gün who had been on hunger strike for 90 days to retrieve body of his son who was killed in airstrike in Dersim had his son’s bones delivered yesterday. The funeral ceremony took place today in Hozat district of Dersim.

Kemal Gün, who had been on a hunger strike for 90 days has received his dead son’s body today and ended his hunger strike. His treatment will begin following the funeral ceremony in Hozat Djemevi.

Selin Top and Fatma Yıldırım, who were among the 11 people who were detained during the demonstration held in Kadıköy demanding release of Gülmen and Özakça, have gone on hunger strike in the Gayrettepe Security Directorate where they are detained.

Attempting to go to the Human Rights Monument to support the protesters who are there to protest arrest of Gülmen and Özakça, CHP MPs did pace up and down protest when stopped by the police.

Attorney Kozağaçlı has said that “the reason for their arrest is that "they would disturb the functioning of the justice system”, and added, “It is an unprecedented arrest decision. There is no such reason for arrest in our law”.

Academic Nuriye Gülmen and teacher Semih Özakça who have been on a hunger strike for 77 days and were taken into custody two days ago have been arrested.