We condemn, in the strongest possible terms, the detention in custody of Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, Editor in Chief and Ankara correspondent of the newspaper Cumhuriyet. They are now in prison accused of publishing reports concerning the supply of weapons by the Turkish government’s intelligence agency to groups in Syria. This development once again throws light on the current situation in Turkey:
– Freedom of thought and expression in Turkey, freedom of the press and the public’s right to access information are daily violated and trampled underfoot. The people of Turkey are prevented from exercising globally accepted freedoms and democratic rights.
– The judicial system is operating under the direct control of government and the Presidential Palace. President Erdoğan has forced through these detentions to ensure that these two journalists would be made to pay the price for the news they had reported.
– Those who, for years, have been extending material and moral aid, weapons and logistical support to Al-Qaeda derivative organizations like Al-Nusra, ISIL and Ahrar al-Sham are trying to prevent discussion of what they have been doing. They will not, in the end, be able to avoid facing an independent justice system, in both national and international courts of justice.
The task of the day and of the era is for all citizens who have a conscience to act together in the fight for democracy, justice, equality and freedom, and to stand against repression and persecution everywhere.
Selahattin Demirtaş – Figen Yüksekdağ
Peoples’ Democratic Party
Co-Chairs
26 November 2015