Turkey arrests 14 opposition members on terrorism charges
Turkish police have arrested 14 political and union representatives on charges of belonging to a terrorist organization, Evrencel newspaper reported Monday.
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This comes as a continuation of Turkey’s policy of repression, and Turkey’s human rights record has been challenged, especially with regard to the detention of thousands of opponents on terrorism charges.
According to Ahval Turkey: The 14 are among 19 people detained by the police in raids carried out in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir in five cities between November 8 and 9.
The detainees include 5 local officials from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party, members of the Democratic Regions Party and the Kurdistan Socialist Party, as well as a number of local officials from the Union of Health and Social Services Workers and the Education Union.
The newspaper said: Evidence of terrorism charges against the detainees includes alleged participation in protests against sacked Peoples‘ Democratic Party officials and press releases in solidarity with detained unionists.
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The Turkish government accuses the Peoples Democratic Party of links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, an armed group that has been fighting a four-decade war for Kurdish autonomy in Turkey.
