Early on Monday, Turkey’s interior ministry removed three pro-Kurdish opposition mayors of southeastern Diyarbakir, Mardin and Van provinces – Adnan Selcuk Mizrakli, Ahmet Turk and Bedia Ozgokce Ertan respectively – from their posts as part of a major terrorism-related investigation in which 418 members of Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) have also been detained.
Protests against the actions by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) government have also faced heavy-handed police intervention since Monday.
“The police prevented and intervened HDP MPs and politicians, members of HDP, lawyers, journalists, and all peaceful demonstrators and dispersed the protests by using excessive force which led to the violation of the right to peaceful protest and prohibition of torture and ill-treatment,” read the statement released by the IHD.
The association provided visual evidence, including photographs and video footage, and details of incidents regarding the human rights violations by police during the protests, adding that the number of protesters detained across the country had already reached a thousand.
Two female HDP lawmakers, Feleknas Uca, and Ayse Acar Basaran had reportedly been hospitalized by police during the protests.
Some journalists were taken into police custody while covering the police intervention.
Additionally, lawyers from different bars and associations were not allowed to issue public statements in front of courthouses in Izmir and Istanbul, the IHD statement said.
A 12-year old boy was photographed while being rear-handcuffed by police during the protests in Ankara.
A mentally disabled man was reported to have been dragged from a shop into the street and beaten by police using truncheons and police helmets.
Police dispersed crowds in Diyarbakır using water cannons, and tear gas, the IHD added.
The IHD said the police crackdowns were still ongoing wherever protests were staged, referring to the “broad powers” of the governors who were granted to implement state of emergency practices for 3 years by Law No. 7145 on the Amendment of Some Laws and Emergency Decrees as of July 31, 2018.
The governors were using their new powers to restrict and disperse the opposition meetings and demonstrations, according to the IHD.
The statement also touched on the right to assemble and demonstration which was designated with Article 34 of the Constitution and Article 11 of the European Court on Human Rights (ECHR).
Finally, the IHD has demanded international community take action for the reinstatement of ousted mayors, the lifting the bans on peaceful protests, the prevention the police resistance amounting to torture and ill-treatment against opposition protests, the effective investigation of perpetrators, including commanding officers, of torture and ill-treatment, the prevention of arbitrary detentions and arrests in the country.
Another call for an international reaction against the AKP moves came from Martina Anderson, a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) representing Northern Ireland for Sinn Féin.
“The European Union (EU), who provide funding to Turkey, must end its silence on Turkish state oppression against the Kurdish people and their democratically elected representatives,” said the MEP.
The post Turkish NGO calls on international support for ousted opposition mayors appeared first on IPA NEWS.
from IPA NEWS https://ipa.news/2019/08/24/turkish-ngo-calls-on-international-support-for-ousted-opposition-mayors/
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