TURKEY/MASS ARRESTS AND DEPORTATIONS OF FOREIGN DELEGATES ATTENDING THE PEACE RALLIES IN DIYARBAKIR
Press Release: 1 September 1997 Urgent Action
News is just coming in from Turkey of the wholesale clampdown by the Government on people attending demonstrations and rallies organised for this week, following the banning of Musa Anter, Peace Train from Bonn to Turkey.
Reports tell of mass arrests in the Southeast, (est. over 2000 people), the blocking of conveys on their way from Adana, Batman, Suruc, Antep, Ankara and other places of Diyarbakir and the turning back of delegates at Diyarbakir airport.
During a telephone interview from Ankara, Mr, Erling Folkobord, a Norwegian MP relates how he, along with the British Lord, Lord Rea and Bruce Kent arrived this morning in Diyarbakir airport and were detained by the police. They were told that the peace rallies were forbidden. Mr. Folkobord insisted in phoning his embassy, at which point his mobile phone was physically taken from him and, as Bruce Kent took photographs of the incident, his camera was taken and the film destroyed. They were sent back to Ankara airport and asked to leave the country. It is also reported that a 7 member Italian delagation was sent back to Istanbul yesterday.
Other witness reports described scenes of mass arrests, and of attacks by the police on people outside the airport. It appears that a special Gendarme unit has been set up at the airport. Unconfirmed reports put the numbers of those arrested at close to two thousand. Conveys of buses on their way to the rallies have been stopped and the ID cards of those on board have been taken.
KHRP's chairman, Michael Feeney, flew out to Turkey last Thursday evening, and is presently in Diyarbakir. We have been unable to confirm the exact location of the other British delegate, Dr. Frances D'Souza, Director of Article XIX, and Christine Blower, President of NUT, but we understand that they are on coaches which have been stopped.
The KHRP has contacted Turkish Embassy and the Turkish Foreign Affairs/Press Office for information concerning the situation but no information in forthcoming at this time.
The KHRP is concerned for the safety of all those
detained. We are concerned over the arbitrary nature of these arrests, the
conditions of detention, and the prevetnion of the right of peaceful assembly.
If you wish to express your concern about thesse event, we suggest that you
can contact the following offices:
The Governor of Diyarbakir: Fax: 90
- 412 222 288
The Regional Governor: Fax: 90 - 412 224 3572
The Chief Prosecutor of Diyarbakir: Fax: 90 - 412 228
7749
The Mnister of Justice: Fax: 90 - 312 425 4066
The Minister of the Interior: Fax: 90 - 312 417 2390
For further information please contact: Kerim Yildiz, Executive Director / Fiona McKay, Deputy Director / Sally Eberhardt, Public Relations Officer Kurdish Human Rights Project on the address below.
Please e-mail KHRP at khrp@khrp.org,
to be placed on our Press Release mailing list.
