The new Turkey |
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| 23-Jan-2019 20:11 | |
Turkish court sentences former pro-Kurdish lawmaker Kürkçü to jail on terrorism charges
Ertuğrul Kürkçü, a former HDP deputy representing the western province of İzmir, was found guilty of spreading propaganda for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) for a speech he delivered during Newroz celebrations in the eastern province of Iğdır in 2016. Ankara accuses the HDP of harboring sympathies and aiding the PKK, an armed group that has been in war in Turkey for over three decades. Hundreds of elected HDP mayors and councillors have also been imprisoned in Turkey with the state appointing administratorsto take over the running of many towns and cities in the southeast, shutting the pro-Kurdish party off from power and influence at a local level. Kürkçü has said he will appeal the decision by the Iğdır Criminal Court. In a separate ongoing case, prosecutor has asked for 70-year- old Kürkçü face up to 33 years in jail over three other speeches he delivered in Turkey’s Kurdish-majority southeastern provinces in the years 2012, 2015 and 2018.
Turkish lawmaker faces terrorism indictment 28.07.2017 Diyarbakir’s 10th High Criminal court accepted the indictment against Izmir MP Ertugrul Kurkcu. The province's Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has demanded a prison sentence ranging from between 9-and-a-half-years to 23 years. Kurkcu will face trial on charges of being a “member of armed terrorist organization”, “propagandizing for a terrorist group” and “inciting public hatred and hostility or contempt”. The 74-page indictment claims Kurkcu tried to defend attacks by the PKK and the group’s so-called “autonomy” projects. He is accused of describing PKK assaults as “legitimate defense”. Kurkcu also described the Turkish Republic and its law-enforcement agencies as “occupiers”, the indictment added. HDP lawmakers began facing prosecution under anti-terrorism legislation after their parliamentary immunity was lifted in March 2016. Turkey's government accuses the HDP of being linked to the PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU. |
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20 Feb. 2018 - Seven HDP deputies face criminal charges
 20 Feb. 2018 The charges include “spreading propaganda for a terrorist organisation”, “publicly insulting the Turkish nation, military and security forces”, “praising crime and criminals”, and “insulting the president”. The HDP has been under tremendous pressure since it became the first predominantly Kurdish political party to break the ten percent electoral threshold and enter Turkey’s parliament in June 2015, narrowly defending its presence in parliament during the snap elections later that year. A resurgence of violence between Turkish armed forces and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in July that year led to a crackdown on HDP politicians, many of whom are accused by the government of being linked to the PKK, which has a long history of conflict with Turkish armed forces since it started an insurgency in the 1980s. The indictment against the seven MPs accuses them of praising the jailed PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan and attending the funerals of PKK members, besides the terrorism propaganda charge. The indicted HDP deputies are Ziya Pir, Leyla Birlik, Nadir Yıldırım, Feleknas Uca, Ahmet Yıldırım, Ertuğrul Kürkçü and Alican Önlü. The Turkish parliament voted to lift immunities from prosecution from members of parliament in May 2016, leading to the arrest of a number of them, including former party co-chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ. Source |
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Prosecutor seeks up to 23 years in jail for HDP deputy Kürkçü on terror charges
28 Luly 2017 |
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28 July 2017 - Turkish lawmaker faces terrorism indictment
28 July 2017 Diyarbakir’s 10th High Criminal court accepted the indictment against Izmir MP Ertugrul Kurkcu. The province's Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has demanded a prison sentence ranging from between 9-and-a-half-years to 23 years. Kurkcu will face trial on charges of being a “member of armed terrorist organization”, “propagandizing for a terrorist group” and “inciting public hatred and hostility or contempt”. The 74-page indictment claims Kurkcu tried to defend attacks by the PKK and the group’s so-called “autonomy” projects. He is accused of describing PKK assaults as “legitimate defense”. Kurkcu also described the Turkish Republic and its law-enforcement agencies as “occupiers”, the indictment added. HDP lawmakers began facing prosecution under anti-terrorism legislation after their parliamentary immunity was lifted in March 2016. Turkey's government accuses the HDP of being linked to the PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU. Source |
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A Turkish court sentenced a former lawmaker from the pro-Kurdish opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) to 2 years in jail on terrorism charges, independent news site Diken reported on Tuesday.
Seven members of parliament from Turkey’s Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) have been hit with a list of criminal indictments which includes terror charges, the Turkish news site Diken reports.
A court in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır on July 28 approved an indictment prepared by the province’s chief public prosecutor’s office, demanding a prison sentence from 9.5 to 23 years for Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) deputy Ertuğrul Kürkçü.
