Attacks on Offices of Independent Candidates

Two further election offices of the Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block were demolished in the districts of Toroslar and Silifke in Mersin (south-eastern Mediterranean). One or more unidentified assailants crashed the windows of the election office in Toroslar. The Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block is affiliated to the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) in the run up to the parliamentary elections in June this year.

The Provincial Chairman of the BDP, Cihan Yılmaz, called the Mersin police on duty and remarked, "The fact that the assailants have not been found yet in a city that is under 24-hour CCTV surveillance is thought-provoking".

The attack in Toroslar was done at around 1.00 am in the night from Sunday to Monday (23 May). The windows were broken and posters and pictures of Mersin Candidate Ertuğrul Kürkçü were torn up. The police was informed in the morning right after the attack had been discovered. Without investigating the demolished office, the police concluded that 'there was no stone in the office that could be used as evidence'. Subsequently, they left the scene without writing a police report. BDP Party Assembly Members Yüksel Mutlu and Mehmet Doymaz visited the destroyed office together with Provincial Chair Yılmaz.

Yılmaz stated that he talked to the police supervisor and that the stones used for the assault still remained untouched inside the election office. He drew attention to the fact that the distance between the office and the next police station was not more than a hundred metres.

"The incidents experienced in Mersin in the past two to three days and this growing tendency against our election offices is remarkable. The attack on our office in Akbelen [Toroslar] happened one hundred metres away from a police station. This city is under 24-hour video surveillance. It arouses our suspicion that the assailants are not being arrested", Yılmaz said.

At the same time, the National Movement Party (MHP) had organized a feast in the vicinity of the election office, which was apparently followed by a demonstration with banners of the "Grey Wolves", an ultra-nationalist and neo fascist youth organization of the MHP. Reportedly, the police did not intervene.

Also the Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block election office in Silifke was demolished by one or more attackers the same night. Windows were broken and pictures and banners of Candidate Kürkçü were ripped up.

The Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block election office in Mahmudiye, another district of Mersin, was demolished on 12 May. Kürkçü is one of twelve independent candidates who were temporarily barred from running for the elections by the Supreme Election Board (YSK) in April.

Attack in Istanbul

Again last night, the election office of İlhan Coşkun, Candidate for the Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block in Yalova (east of Istanbul), was damaged with stones. Banners of the candidate were torn into pieces and a Turkish flag was hoisted.

The car of Labour, Democracy and Freedom Block Candidate Sırrı Süreyya Önder was attacked when he was passing by the MHP election office in Bayrampaşa/Istanbul. The attackers first tried to cut off Önder's way. They threw stones at the car when he did not stop. The car windows got broken and one passenger was injured at the head. (ŞA/VK)