Yet Another Trial for Pro-Kurdish Politicians Türk and Tuğluk

The Ankara Public Chief Prosecutor's Office launched a trial against former co-chair Ahmet Türk of the closed pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) and former DTP MP Aysel Tuğluk. Both politicians stand accused for "spreading propaganda for an illegal organization" on the grounds of their efforts to bring back to Turkey eight soldiers who were held hostage by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

In October 2007, members of the PKK terror organization had carried out a crackdown on a police station in Dağlıca in the south-eastern province of Hakkari. 13 soldiers died, eight soldiers were taken hostage by the PKK.

Türk, former MP of Mardin, and Tuğluk, former MP of Diyarbakır in the pre-dominantly Kurdish region of south-eastern Anatolia, face another five years' imprisonment each in the context of the latest case opened against them. The Diyarbakır Prosecution has already demanded prison sentence adding up to a total of 115 years for both politicans by reason of speeches made between 2005 and 2009.

"A picture of Öcalan during the hand-over"

The indictment says that Türk and Tuğluk went to Iraq together with Siirt MP Osman Özçelik from the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) and Van MP Fatma Kurtulan. There, eight military soldiers who had been taken hostage by the PKK in the Dağlıca raid in October 2007 were handed over to them and brought back to Turkey.

Furthermore, the indictment states that "the soldiers were handed over in Iraq at a place with members of the terror organization and a picture of imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan. At the same time, images containing organizational propaganda could be seen".

50 years for Türk, 75 years for Tuğluk demanded

The Diyarbakır Special Authority Public Prosecutor's Office prepared separate indictments for Türk and Tuğluk under charges of "spreading propaganda for the PPK", according to article 7/2 of the Anti-Terror Law. The prosecution demands 45 years imprisonment for Türk, Tuğluk faces prison sentence of up to 75 years. (EÖ/VK)