[imc-presse] Appeal for ill prisoners in Turkey for Prime Minister R.T. Erdogan and Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdag + Signatories

[Civaka Azad e.V.]

Dear Sir/Madam

 

At present there are 544 prisoners critically ill in Turkish prisons
according to reports prepared by the Human Rights Association (IHD) and
Turkey Human Rights Foundation (TIHV). 163 of them are in life-threating
conditions. We recently prepared a declaration signed by politicians,
academics, writers, artists and civil society representatives calling for
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Minister for Justice Bekir
Bozdag to take all necessary steps for critically ill prisoners in Turkey to
be released. This declaration was covered in the Turkish media. 

 

In sharing this information with you and attaching the declaration, we hope
that you will follow developments regarding the critically ill prisoners in
Turkey. 

 

We would like to once again thank everyone for their support and
participation. 

 

Kind regards,

Devriş Çimen

 

 

Civaka Azad - Kurdisches Zentrum für Öffentlichkeitsarbeit e.V. 
www.civaka-azad.org <http://www.civaka-azad.org/>  // info at civaka-azad.org 
Bornheimer Landstraße 48, 60316 Frankfurt 
Tel.: 069/84772084, Mobil: 01573/8485818

 

***

 

Dear Prime Minister R.T. Erdoğan, Dear Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdağ

 

At present there are 544 prisoners critically ill in Turkish prisons
according to reports of the Human Rights Association İnsan Hakları Derneği
(IHD) and Türkiye Insan Haklari Vakfi (TIHV). 163 of them are in
life-threating conditions. The Minister of Justice recently stated that 2300
prisoners had died in the last 13 years. 

The situation in Turkish prisons is in general extremely inhuman. 

After a recent amendment of the custody law passed in January 2013 chances
for ill prisoners to be released have decreased even more. Political
prisoners suffering from health problems have in fact no chance to be
released, because they are charged under the controversial "Anti Terror
Legislation".

According to this legislation political prisoners can be termed a threat to
public security, which prevents their release. In addition the law
established in January 2013 indicates that forensic institutes make the
decision whether the prisoners are released. But the forensic institutes are
well known for being politically biased.

The Turkish Human Rights Association, Bar Associations and the Medical
Association (TBB) have denounced this practice. Opposition politicians have
made proposals for improvement of legal regulations in parliament, but they
have not been approved until now. 

The imprisonment and abuses of critically ill persons violate the "Right to
life" and the "Prohibition of Torture" regulations of the "European
Convention of Human Rights". The inhuman conditions in Turkish prisons must
be improved. Human rights abuses are not tolerable. The European Court of
Human Rights (ECHR) condemned Turkey in many cases.

 

Dear Prime Minister R.T. Erdoğan, dear Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdağ, as
a first step we ask you to take all possible measures to ensure the release
of all critically ill prisoners in Turkey.

 

 

Signatories:

 

Turkey

Prof. Dr. Murat Belge, Academic and Publisher.

Akın Birdal, Honorary President of the Human Rights Association of Turkey
(IHD).

Hasan Cemal, Journalist and Author.

Selahattin Demirtaş, Co-chair of Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) and Member
of the Parliament in Turkey.

Hatip Dicle, Imprisoned Politician.

Aynur Doğan, Singer.

Aslı Erdoğan, Author.

Prof. Dr. Büşra Ersanlı, Academic.

Prof. Dr. Şebnem Korur Fincancı, Chair of Turkey Human Rights Foundation
(TIHV).

Prof. Dr. Gencay Gürsoy, Neurologist and Human Rights Activist, former Chair
of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB).

Eren Keskin, Lawyer and Human Rights Activist.

Sema Kaygusuz, Author.

Osman Kavala, Founder and Director.

Murathan Mungan, Poet and Author.

Sırrı Süreya Önder, Member of the Parliament in Turkey and Film Director.

Ahmet Şık, Journalist.

Sebahat Tuncel, Co-chair of People's Democracy Party (HDP).

Vedat Türkali, Author.

Ahmet Türk, Co-chair of Democratic Society Congress (DTK).

Öztürk Türkdoğan, Chair of Human Rights Association.

Yıldırım Türker, Author and Poet.

Ragıp Zarakolu, Author and Publisher.

Sezgin Tanrıkulu, Vice-Leader of People's Republican Party (CHP) and Member
of the Parliament in Turkey.

Pınar Aydinlar, Singer and Activist.

 

South Africa

Emeritus Desmond Tutu, Archbishop, South Africa.

Moulana Ihsaan Hendricks, President of the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC),
South Africa.

Essa Moosa, Judge, South Africa.

National Muslim Prison Board, South Africa.

 

USA

Prof. Noam Chomsky, Institute Professor MIT, Philosopher, USA.

Prof. Immanuel Wallerstein, Sociologist and Analyst, Yale University, USA.

Janet Biehl, Writer and communalist, USA.

 

Canada

Maude Barlow, Author, Former UN Advisor on Water, Canada.

Avi Haligua, Journalist, Vancouver, Canada.

 

Latin America

Oscar Olivera, Laureate of the Goldman Environmental Prize Goldman and the
Letelier-Moffitt Human Rights Award, Bolivia.

Ricardo Gustavo Espeja, Journalist and Historian, Argentinia.

Luis Rosadilla, Senator, Uruguay.

Beate Taufer, Psychologist, Uruguay.
Dr. Sara Perona, Philosopher, Uruguay.
Daniel Heugas, Engineer, Uruguay.

 

European Parliament

Dr. Renate Sommer, Member of the European Parliament, European People's
Party (Christian Democrats), DE.

Jean Lambert, Member of the European Parliament, Green Party, UK.

Ska Keller, Member of the European Parliament, Group of the Greens/European
Free Alliance, DE.

Member of the Delegation to the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, DE.

Gabi Zimmer, President of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left. DE. 

Jürgen Klute, Member of the European Parliament, European United Left/Nordic
Green Left, DE. 

 

UK 

Ernesto Laclau, Political theorist, Buenos Aires/London, UK.

Prof. Bill Bowring, President of the European Lawyers for Democracy and
Human Rights (ELDH), International Secretary, Haldane Society of Socialist
Lawyers, UK.

Prof. Mary Davis, Professor of Labour History at Royal Holloway, University
of London, UK.

Bruce Kent, Vice-President, Pax Christi, UK.

Prof. Dr. Latif Waid, Economist, London, UK.

Prof. Dr. Cynthia Cockburn, Feminist researcher and writer, UK.

Dr. Radha D'Souza, Academic, writer and human rights campaigner, UK.

Dr. Thomas Jeffrey Miley, Department of Sociology, University of Cambridge,
UK.

Dr. Les Levidov, Senior Research Fellow, Open University, Milton Keynes, UK.

Dr. Shahrar Ali, London Green Party European Election candidate, UK.

Elfyn Llwyd, MP, House of Commons, UK.

Hywel Williams, MP, House of Commons, UK.

Maggie Bowden, General Secretary of the Human Rights Organization
"Liberation", UK.

Frances Webber, Human rights lawyer, UK.

Margaret Owen OBE, Barrister and Director of Widows for Peace through
Democracy (WPD), UK.

Gareth Peirce, Human rights lawyer, UK.

Louise Christian, Human rights lawyer, UK.

Jonathan Fryer, Writer and broadcaster, UK.

Caroline Allen, London Green Party European Election candidate, UK.

Nick Hildyard, Policy Analyst, UK.

 

Ireland

Conor Murphy, MP, on behalf of the 5 Sinn Féin Members of Parliament (UK),
Northern Ireland.

Pat Sheehan, Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), on behalf of the 29
Sinn Féin MLA's at the Northern Ireland Assembly, Northern Ireland.

Seán Crowe, Teachta Dála, on behalf of the 14 Sinn Féin TD's at Leinster
House (Parliament) of Ireland.

 

Germany

Prof. Dr. Andreas Buro, Political Scientist, Coordinator of the NGO
Dialog-Kreis, Grävenwiesbach, Germany.

Prof. Dr. med. Ulrich Gottstein, International Physicians for the Prevention
of Nuclear War (IPPNW), Frankfurt, Germany.

Cem Özdemir, Member of Federal Parliament, Chairman of the Alliance 90/ The
Greens, Berlin, Germany.

Claudia Roth, Vice President of the Federal Parliament, Berlin, Germany.

Kai Gehring, Member of Federal Parliament, Alliance 90/ The Greens, Berlin,
Germany.

Manuel Sarrazin, Member of Federal Parliament, Alliance 90/ The Greens,
Germany.

Uwe Kekeritz, Member of Federal Parliament, Alliance 90/ The Greens,
Germany. 

Annette Groth, Member of Federal Parliament, Left Party, Berlin, Germany.

Ulla Jelpke, Member of Federal Parliament, Left Party, Berlin, Germany.

Karin Binder, Member of Federal Parliament, Left Party, Berlin, Germany.

Martina Renner, Member of Federal Parliament, Left Party, Berlin, Germany.

Thomas Gebauer, Executive Director of medico international, Frankfurt,
Germany.

Dr. Gisela Penteker, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear
War (IPPNW), Hemmoor, Germany.

Dr. Christiane Lang, Chair professional association Philosophy of
Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Dr. Rolf Hosfeld, Writer and Historian, Schwielowsee, Germany. 

Dr. Heinz-Jürgen Schneider, Lawyer and Author, Hamburg, Germany. 

Prof. Armin Rieser, Bonn, Germany.

Dogan Akhanli, Writer, Cologne, Germany.

Albrecht Kieser, Journalist, Cologne, Germany.

Ali Zülfikar, Artist, Cologne, Germany.

Gerd Schumann, Author, Berlin, Germany.

Memo Sahin, Writer, Dialog-Kreis, Cologne, Germany.

Pater Wolfgang Jungheim, Pax Christi, Dialogkreis, Lahnstein, Germany.

Atilla Keskin, Writer, Cologne, Germany.

Yüksel Yavuz, Film director, Berlin, Germany.

Susanne Hennig, Chairwoman of the Left Party in Thuringia, Germany.

Matthias Bärwolff, Member of Parliament Thuringia, Left Party, Germany.

Barbara Cárdenas, Member of State Parliament Hessen, Left Party, Germany.

Christiane Schneider, Member of State Parliament Hessen, Left Party,
Germany.

Cansu Özdemir, Member of State Parliament Hessen, Left Party, Germany.

 

Norway

Eugene Schoulgin, Writer, Vice-President of PEN International, Oslo, Norway.

Erling Folkvord, Former Parliamentarian Party Red and writer, Norway.

Efraim Bulut, Cardiologist, Norway.

Arne L. Lynngaard, Managing Director and former chair of Rafto Foundation,
Norway.

Kariane Westrheim, PhD, Chairperson EUTCC & University of Bergen, Norway.

 

Sweden

Valter Mutt, Member of Parliament, Green Party, Sweden.

Hans Linde, Member of Parliament, Left Party, Foreign Policy Spokesperson,
Sweden.

Bodil Ceballos, Member of Parliament, Green Party, Foreign Policy
Spokesperson, Sweden.

Maria Hagberg, Author and peace and women´s activist, Sweden.

Ann-Margarethe Livh, Commissioner in Opposition in the municipality of
Stockholm, Sweden.

Ann-Carin Landström, Person responsible for international affairs, Left
party, Sweden.

Mustafa Can, Journalist and Author, Sweden.

Kemal Görgu, Chairman of the Swedish Peace Council, Sweden.

Sven Wollter, Actor, Sweden.

Olof Buckard, Satirist, Actor and Chairman of Artists for Peace, Sweden.

 

Finland

Dr. Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, Researcher and Author, Finland/Denmark.

 

Denmark

Erik Arnsted, Musician and Member of UNA, Denmark.

 

Switzerland 

Carlo Sommaruga, Member of the National Council (Social Democratic Party),
President of the Foreign Policy Commission, Lawyer, Switzerland.

Yvonne Gilli, Member of the National Council (Green Party), Switzerland.

Liliane Maury Pasquier, Member of the Swiss Council of States for Geneva,
Chair of the Commission for Social Security and Health, Switzerland.

Maya Heuschmann, Coordinator of the Turkey-Section of Amnesty International,
Switzerland.

Spain

Óscar Menéndez, Science journalist, Spain.

Manuel Martorell, Journalist and historian, Spain.

Ainara Mendiola, Journalist and translator, Euskal Herria, Basque Country.

 

Hungary

G. M. Tamás, Philosopher, former member of the Hungarian Parliament,
Hungary.

 

France

Jacques Gaillot, Catholic Bishop, France.

 

Netherlands

Dr. Joost Jongerden, Sociologist, Netherlands.

 

Israel

Prof. Nurit Peled-Elhanan, 2001 Sakharov prize laureate for human rights and
the freedom of thought, Israel.

 

Cyprus

Dr. Ahmet Djavit An, Paediatrician and Historian, Cyprus. 

 



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